Wolfbite
by NileRivers94
Summary: Leo's back for his third year at Hogwarts with a plethora of secrets and a new mission: find Peter Pettigrew. This task proves more difficult than Leo originally anticipated as dementors swarm the grounds, looking hard for Leo's uncle, the infamous Sirius Black. Sequel to 'Snakeskin'.
1. Chapter 1: Safe For Now

**Chapter 1: Safe For Now**

_Rose invited me over for dinner tomorrow to meet her family. Not thinking, I agreed, excited to meet Muggles and learn more about them. It wasn't until after I accepted that I realized that they might get the wrong idea and think that we might be dating. Strangely enough, the thought didn't bother me all that much. I wonder why?_

* * *

"Sirius Orion Black, you giant bloody _moron_ -"

A crash sounded as a porcelain teapot flew across the kitchen and hit the wall.

"Now, Leo, don't you think you might be overreacting a bit -"

The statement ended in a yelp as a giant, shaggy black dog ran from the kitchen and up the stairs, a blonde teen hot on his heels and hurling insults at him. The boy stopped at the top of the stairs, glaring at the dog as he pelted up the next flight of stairs and continued all the way up to hide in his room. The boy huffed before stomping back down the stairs and flicking his wrist, allowing a long, thin piece of wood to fall into his hand. With a wave and a muttered word, the teapot repaired itself and the boy sat down at the table, looking over the various things laying there.

The boy was Leo Black, and he was a wizard. Twelve years ago, Leo had lost almost all the magical relatives – with the exception of his cousin, Harry – he had left to an evil Dark Wizard who called himself Lord Voldemort. They had been murdered right in front of their very eyes when Harry and Leo were barely more than a year old. Harry had escaped from the same attack with nothing more than a scar on his forehead, where Voldemort's curse, instead of killing him, had rebounded upon its originator. Barely alive, Voldemort had fled...

But Leo had come face-to-face with him at Hogwarts. Remembering their last meeting as he sat with his head in his hands, Leo had to say he was quite lucky to be alive. He had dueled one of the most powerful wizards alive – sort of – and, not only had he survived, he had _won_. Granted, if Fawkes the phoenix hadn't swooped by and distracted him, Leo doubted he would've gotten the upper hand. But still, he had _won_.

Ordinarily, Leo's ego would have inflated to the point where he would have been barely tolerable to be around, but the experience ended up grounding him somewhat. Seeing how close he had come to death had inspired Leo to train even harder over the summer so he would not be caught unawares next time he ran into Voldemort – because there would most assuredly be a next time. He had some help from his father's best friend, Remus Lupin, and his uncle, Sirius Black who, while not having a wand, was still able to advise, direct, and teach Leo when Remus was unable to be there.

Leo picked up one of the things on the table, glaring at the clipping that came from the wizarding newspaper, the _Daily Prophet_, and reading:

_MINISTRY OF MAGIC EMPLOYEE SCOOPS GRAND PRIZE _

_Arthur Weasley, Head of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office at the Ministry of Magic, has won the annual Daily Prophet Grand Prize Galleon Draw. _

_A delighted Mr. Weasley told the Daily Prophet, "We will be spending the gold on a summer holiday in Egypt, where our eldest son, Bill, works as a curse breaker for Gringotts Wizarding Bank." _

_The Weasley family will be spending a month in Egypt, returning for the start of the new school year at Hogwarts, which five of the Weasley children currently attend._

Leo scanned the moving photograph, his scowl becoming more pronounced as he saw all nine of the Weasleys waving furiously at him, standing in front of a large pyramid. Plump little Mrs. Weasley; tall, balding Mr. Weasley; six sons; and one daughter, all (though the black-and-white picture didn't show it) with flaming-red hair. Right in the middle of the picture was Ron, tall and gangling, with his pet rat, Scabbers, on his shoulder and his arm around his little sister, Ginny.

It was the rat that had caused the argument in the kitchen. Leo had been showing his uncle all the birthday gifts he had received from his friends, when Sirius had suddenly gone rigid, staring intently at the rat in the photo. After some careful prodding, Sirius finally admitted that the rat was really Peter Pettigrew, the man who had sold Leo's family out to Voldemort and gotten Sirius sent to life in Azkaban after carefully framing him.

Leo had been searching for him since his first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, but had not been able to find him due to the fact that he was lacking one crucial bit of information: Pettigrew could turn into a bloody rat. Sirius had then followed this up by showing that he could turn into a dog, at which point Leo had started yelling at him, telling him Pettigrew had been sleeping in his dorm room for the past two years and he had had ample opportunity to find and capture him. That had been the point where Leo had started throwing things and sent his uncle fleeing from the room in the form of the dog, Padfoot.

Leo jumped slightly as he felt wetness touching his hand and stared down crossly at the aforementioned mutt who looked up at him. His eyes were wide, his ears folded back as he gave a low whine, nudging Leo's hand. _Begging, Padfoot? Really?_

"One of these days, I'm going to send you to the pound," Leo threatened, receiving an affronted look before Padfoot quickly went back to begging. "You're still a git." More whining as Padfoot licked his hand. "Fine, you can still come. But you have to behave, alright? Don't need to make things worse for Harry than they already are."

Padfoot gave a happy bark before racing from the room, Leo following at a slower pace as he shook his head fondly. It was July 31st, the day of his and Harry's thirteenth birthday. Harry had to remain at the Dursleys for a few weeks out of every summer to ensure the blood wards stayed intact so that Voldemort couldn't come and murder him in his sleep or something. Leo didn't really understand it, but he didn't understand a lot of things Dumbledore said.

Leo was planning on visiting his cousin and bringing him a present: a Memory Orb. It was a small, unassuming glass ball that, when touched by a wand, showed whatever memories were stored within. Sirius said it was a bit like a portable Pensieve, whatever that was. Leo had put memories of himself and Harry in there – only the fun ones, of course. He had wanted to put memories of Harry's parents in there as well, but neither Remus nor Sirius wanted to give themselves away to the boy just yet, for his own safety.

Leo could understand their reasoning. Remus was a werewolf with the biggest case of self-loathing Leo had ever seen whereas Sirius was an escaped convict accused of murdering thirteen people. He was innocent, of course, but still. It was hardly the right time to drag Harry into the wacky world Leo found himself in.

Padfoot sat at the front door, collar and leash in his jaws as he wagged his tail at Leo's appearance. Leo attached both to the dog, wanting to keep up appearances as the two set out for the nearest bus stop that would get them close to Little Whinging, where Harry lived. They didn't have to wait long before the bus appeared and the driver eyed Padfoot warily. Padfoot gave him the patented puppy-dog eyes while Leo convinced the man that his dog was perfectly docile.

Reluctantly, they were allowed to board the bus, where they sat in the back and waited for their stop. Half an hour later, they arrived at a bus stop ten minutes from Little Whinging and hopped out before walking the remainder of the way to their destination. Leo stopped at Number 4 Privet Drive and knocked on the door. The door flung open and Leo had to blink in surprise.

On the threshold stood Marge Dursley. She was very like her brother, Vernon Dursley: large, beefy, and purple-faced, she even had a mustache, though not as bushy as his. She held a glass of wine in her left hand, and an old and evil-tempered bulldog peeked out behind her hamlegs. Padfoot growled lowly before Leo nudged him.

"Come crawling back, have you?" she barked at him. "Got tired of living under the bridge with the rest of the trash?"

"Hello, Marge," Leo replied, giving a polite smile. "I see you've had a wonderful time at the Twinkie factory. Hope you left some for the rest of the world."

Padfoot gave a small snort as Marge stared at him, appalled. Leo wasn't sure why, considering he had never once been nice or polite to the woman. Vernon suddenly appeared at this moment, his face paling visibly at the sight of Leo, who waved his fingers and gave an evil grin. He waddled forward quickly.

"What're you doing here, boy?" Vernon demanded.

"Clearly, someone's forgotten the days of the month," Leo remarked dryly. "I'm here to see Harry. It is our birthday, after all."

Padfoot barked in agreement and, for the first time, the Dursleys noticed him. Vernon's reaction was priceless he had gasped in surprise, jumping back in the hallway with a loud yell of, "_What the ruddy hell is that?!"_

"Most cultures refer to it as a dog," Leo explained as though talking to a two year old while the rest of the inhabitants of Privet Drive ran down the hall to see what the commotion was about. "Surprised you don't know what one is, considering your brother-sister breeds them. Or, at least, she breeds something that's half-dog and half-pig. Anyway, hiya, Harry, Happy Birthday!"

Leo waved behind Marge at the dark-haired, bespectacled boy who stood there, a half-amused smile on his face. Padfoot stood up on his hind legs, trying to get a better look when Leo grabbed him by his collar and pulled him down. That wasn't exactly normal dog behavior, after all.

"You have some nerve -" Marge began, and Leo realized she was still standing there.

"I have all the nerve, actually," Leo informed her pleasantly. "And I shall take my nerve – and my dog – and leave once I've had a little Harry time."

At once, both Marge and Vernon began shouting at him. About what, Leo wasn't quite sure, as their voices constantly overlapped each other. Leo exchanged a bemused look with Padfoot, who seemed to be hovering between amusement and mild irritation at the people who had the audacity to – as he would later, rather sarcastically put it – yell at his precious, innocent little nephew. The boy was half-tempted to interrupt, but figured they'd just end up stuck doing this for another hour after he did so. It was simply best to let them get it out.

After several minutes, the two stopped, sweat beading over their purple faces as they heavily panted. Leo merely raised an eyebrow at the pair, refraining from commenting how out of shape they both were. That was just low-hanging fruit. Then again, practically everything with the Dursleys was low-hanging fruit in Leo's book.

"If you're quite finished," Leo began in a very dry tone. "I'd like to speak to my cousin – the adorable skinny one."

Harry's face turned bright red as both Dudley and Padfoot chortled before Dudley abruptly stopped, realizing he was being insulted. Vernon and Marge looked as though they were about to start yelling again when Aunt Petunia decided to step in and somewhat mediate the situation. She allowed Harry to leave the house for a bit to talk with Leo, if only so the boy would leave quicker.

Harry sat down on the front step next to his cousin after the Dursleys went back inside. Immediately, Padfoot jumped on him, wagging his tail and licking his face before Leo pulled him off of the now laughing boy.

"Bad dog, no jumping," Leo scolded him, swatting his nose.

Padfoot gave him an unamused look as Harry sat up, grinning broadly.

"When did you get a dog?" he asked.

"Found him when I got home from the station. He smelled funny," Leo grinned as Padfoot snorted. "But I let him stay anyway. It's been nice having someone around besides Kreacher. Apollo's not too fond of him, though. Keeps trying to bite him and chases him round the house. It's quite hilarious."

Padfoot gave a low grumble while Harry merely laughed. Leo reached into the pocket of his dark red hoodie and pulled out a box, handing it to Harry. Harry opened it and took out the glass ball, looking it over curiously.

"It's called a Memory Orb," Leo informed him. "You can put memories in there and view them at any time by touching the ball with your..." He paused, recalling they were in a Muggle neighborhood. "Stick of Destiny. I've already put a few memories of us and our friends in there."

"It's brilliant, Leo, thanks!" Harry grinned, giving his cousin a one-armed hug before giving a small frown. "I haven't been able to go out and get you anything yet -"

"You gave me Apollo our first year – and he's given me everything. As far as I'm concerned, we're square, Potter," Leo clapped him on the back. "What else've you gotten?"

"Ron got me a Sneakoscope, Hermione got me a broom care kit, and Hagrid got me a book -"

"That tries to bite your face off?" Leo chuckled. "First time I showed it to Paddy here, it chased him round the kitchen. Took nearly half an hour to catch it – mostly because I couldn't stop laughing."

Padfoot gave him a look that could only be described as a discontented pout. Harry laughed.

"How do you put up with him?" Harry asked, scratching the dog behind the ears.

Padfoot gave a low whine and a bark of agreement.

"He gets free food and a warm bed. He can't complain," Leo narrowed his eyes at the black canine. "He won't complain."

Padfoot gave another pout.

"Malfoy sent me something too. Something called Peruvian -"

"Instant Darkness Powder?" Leo finished as Harry nodded, still scratching Padfoot's ears. "Yeah, me too. It was a bit odd, but it should come in handy one day, what with all the adventures we tend to have. Could've used it in the Forest last year for Aragog and the spiders."

"Dunno, not sure it would work. Aragog was blind, but still somehow seemed to know where we were. Vaguely, anyway," Harry frowned. "Still, it was a nice gesture and I... sort of wanted to... apologize, I guess. You were right last year, Malfoy isn't as bad as he used to be. He's really come round."

"Yeah, all it took was opening his eyes a bit and getting him to admit what he really wanted. After that, it was just a matter of his dad revealing what a murderous git he was. Draco's opinion about him changed pretty swiftly after that."

"Do you think he's alright?" Harry questioned somewhat nervously. "I mean, he's not exactly the same person he used to be. He's alright with Muggleborns and Gryffindors and -"

"I wouldn't worry too much about him, Harry," Leo replied, meeting Padfoot's grey eyes and receiving a reassuring tail wag. "Draco's been part of the pure-blood elite his entire life. They develop a lot of different skills, the most prominent of which is a mask that they can put on to hide what they're really thinking and feeling -"

"But what if Malfoy's cracks?" Harry argued.

"Then I send in Kreacher to rescue him," Leo shrugged. "Trust me, Harry, I've thought all this through long and hard. Draco is safe for now. When that ceases to be the case, he will be rescued. You have my word."

"That's good, I guess," Harry finally said, nodding his head as he relaxed. "Did you get the letter about Hogsmeade?"

"Aye," Leo nodded. "Figured I'd just sneak in since there's no force on this earth that would ever get the Dursleys to sign it for me."

Harry snorted in amusement.

* * *

"You do realize that Remus can sign it, right? He is your godfather, after all."

Leo stared at his uncle, half-tempted to flip the table onto him in aggravation. They had returned to Grimmauld, wherein they sat across from each other at the kitchen table, drinking cups of tea as they discussed their talk with Harry. When they got to the part about Hogsmeade, Sirius had decided to drop this bombshell on him.

"Anything else you want to tell me?" Leo asked dryly. "Maybe that my mother's half-mermaid or my dad's secretly a werewolf in disguise?"

"I don't know about all that, but I can tell you what you are," Sirius replied, managing to keep a straight face as Leo leaned forward slightly in curiosity. "A git."

Leo threw the teapot at him again and he took off running, laughing all the while.


	2. Chapter 2: Track Record

**Chapter 2: Track Record**

_I saw Death Eaters walking the streets while I was having dinner with Rose's family. They weren't wearing their masks, but I knew who they were after the many balls I had to go to. I told everyone to get down and stay quiet before I headed outside to confront them. I managed to persuade them to leave, stating that I was gathering information and that they would blow my cover – Voldemort wouldn't be pleased with that. Thankfully, they were low-ranking Death Eaters who would never have an audience with Moldy much less question him. We were safe, for now._

* * *

_BLACK STILL AT LARGE _

_Sirius Black, possibly the most infamous prisoner ever to be held in Azkaban fortress, is still eluding capture, the Ministry of Magic confirmed today._

_"We are doing all we can to recapture Black," said the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, this morning, "and we beg the magical community to remain calm." _

_Fudge has been criticized by some members of the International Federation of Warlocks for informing the Muggle Prime Minister of the crisis._

_"Well, really, I had to, don't you know," said an irritable Fudge. "Black is mad. He's a danger to anyone who crosses him, magic or Muggle. I have the Prime Minister's assurance that he will not breathe a word of Black's true identity to anyone. And let's face it — who'd believe him if he did?" _

_While Muggles have been told that Black is carrying a gun (a kind of metal wand that Muggles use to kill each other), the magical community lives in fear of a massacre like that of twelve years ago, when Black murdered thirteen people with a single curse._

Leo snorted at the picture of the sunken-faced man with long, matted hair blinking slowly up at him before handing it off to Sirius to peruse. In the time he had been at Grimmauld, Sirius had recovered a bit from his time in Azkaban. He was now clean and well-dressed, his beard neatly trimmed and his hair had taken on a healthy shine. His face was no longer quite so sunken in and color had returned somewhat to his cheeks. Six weeks of full meals, a warm bed, pleasant company, and no dementors had worked wonders for the man's health.

"Maybe I should invest in a gun," Sirius mused thoughtfully. "Need something to do Wormtail in with, after all."

"You'd end up shooting yourself, Padfoot," Remus snorted, sipping his cup of coffee.

Sirius pouted as Leo chortled at this, seeming to be in agreement as he ate his porridge. It was a week following Leo and Harry's birthday, during which time Remus had ample opportunity to recover from his full moon experience. When he returned, it was with a copy of the _Daily Prophet_ and a few classic movies he knew Leo would appreciate. Unfortunately, since Grimmauld didn't have any outlets, he didn't have a telly to watch the movies on.

"We could always just get you a new wand," Leo suggested.

"Right, I'll just stroll right into Diagon Alley and ask old Olli for one. Shouldn't be a problem," Sirius rolled his eyes, frowning when Leo flicked bits of porridge at his face.

"Don't play with your food, Leo," Remus idly chastised him, taking the _Prophet_ back from Sirius.

"Yes, _mum_," Leo replied sarcastically. "What I mean is that I could go to Diagon Alley and request another one. I have to go there today anyway to stock up on school supplies, so I might as well."

"What're you gonna do? Walk up to Ollivander and tell him a basilisk ate your wand -" Sirius snorted.

"Well, now that you say it, it sounds stupid," Leo frowned, having planned to do just that. "I'll just have to figure out some way to persuade him. Shouldn't be too hard, he was awfully fond of my dad."

"That's right, I forgot Cas used to work with Ollivander between seasons," Sirius responded thoughtfully.

"Cas used to play Seeker for England," Remus explained, noticing Leo's confused look. "He liked jobs that kept him out of the fight but kept him busy. He was never one to sit idly by and twiddle his thumbs. A trait, I find, he shares with you."

Leo grinned in response to this before finishing his porridge, getting dressed in Muggle clothes, and calling for Kreacher to take him to Diagon Alley. Once there, he walked down the busy streets toward Ollivanders before stopping and staring at the large crowd surrounding _Quality Quidditch Supplies. _

Curious to know what the crowd in the shop was staring at, Leo edged his way inside and squeezed in among the excited witches and wizards until he glimpsed a newly erected podium, on which was mounted the most magnificent broom he had ever seen in his life.

"Just come out — prototype —" a square-jawed wizard was telling his companion.

"It's the fastest broom in the world, isn't it, Dad?" squeaked a boy younger than Leo, who was swinging off his father's arm.

"Irish International Side's just put in an order for seven of these beauties!" the proprietor of the shop told the crowd. "And they're favorites for the World Cup!"

A witch moved to the side, and Leo was able to read the sign next to the broom. Before he could do so, however, he spotted someone he wasn't expecting to see.

"_Harry?_"

Sure enough, the boy jumped and turned around, surprised to see Leo standing behind him. Not wanting to draw attention, Harry dragged Leo out of the crowded shop and began to explain everything that had happened over the past week that had led him to Diagon Alley.

Apparently, Marge had gone too far and insulted his parents, prompting him to use accidental magic to blow her up. Leo was disappointed when Harry clarified that she only swelled up into a balloon and floated away. Panicking about using magic outside school again, Harry had inadvertently called the Knight Bus and had it take him to the Leaky Cauldron. Leo almost asked why he hadn't gone to Grimmauld but then recalled that he had a couple of houseguests he didn't want Harry meeting and held his tongue.

Harry informed him that he met Fudge at the Leaky Cauldron, and Leo's eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. The Leaky Cauldron was swell and all – it was a great place when Leo had needed to wallow in self-loathing during his summer last year – but it was hardly the sort of place one would find the Minister of Magic. Harry explained that it was because he was concerned about the looming threat of Sirius Black.

"...He told me something else, Leo," Harry continued hesitantly. "He told me that, well, Black is your uncle."

"Yeah, I know," Leo shrugged. "Why do you think I go by 'Evans' when I'm out in the wizarding world? I don't need that sort of publicity."

"You knew?" Harry asked, astonished.

Leo nodded, replying that the twins had told him in his first year.

"You seem... oddly okay with being related to a mass murderer," Harry remarked.

"There're worse people to be related to," Leo waved a dismissive hand.

"Like who?"

"Voldemort."

"Fair point."

They then went to the Apothecary to replenish their store of potions ingredients, and as their school robes were now several inches too short in the arm and leg, they visited _Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions_ and bought new ones. Most important of all, they had to buy their new schoolbooks, which would include those for Leo's two new subjects, Care of Magical Creatures and Ancient Runes.

Leo got a surprise as he looked in at the bookshop window. Instead of the usual display of gold-embossed spellbooks the size of paving slabs, there was a large iron cage behind the glass that held about a hundred copies of _The Monster Book of Monsters_ – the same book that had almost torn Sirius' leg off. Torn pages were flying everywhere as the books grappled with each other, locked together in furious wrestling matches and snapping aggressively.

As they entered Flourish and Blotts, the manager came hurrying toward them.

"Hogwarts?" he said abruptly. "Come to get your new books?"

"Yes," said Harry, "We need —"

"Get out of the way," said the manager impatiently, brushing them aside rather rudely. He drew on a pair of very thick gloves, picked up a large, knobbly walking stick, and proceeded toward the door of the Monster Books' cage.

"No worries, we've already got those," Leo informed the man. "We just need some of the less violent books now."

A look of enormous relief spread over the manager's face. "Thank heavens for that. I've been bitten five times already this morning —"

A loud ripping noise rent the air; two of the Monster Books had seized a third and were pulling it apart.

"Stop it! Stop it!" cried the manager, poking the walking stick through the bars and knocking the books apart. "I'm never stocking them again, never! It's been bedlam! I thought we'd seen the worst when we bought two hundred copies of the_ Invisible Book of Invisibility _— cost a fortune, and we never found them... Well... is there anything else I can help you with?"

"Yes," said Harry, looking down his booklist, "I need _Unfogging the Future _by Cassandra Vablatsky."

"And I need _Ancient Runes Made Easy_ by some bloke named Laurenzoo," Leo added.

"Ah, Divination and Ancient Runes," said the manager, stripping off his gloves and leading them into the back of the shop. "Both difficult subjects."

"I've never been one for the easy road," Leo gave a lop-sided grin.

The man gave a small chuckle before walking away to retrieve the two books and handing them to the boys.

"Anything else?" he said.

"Yeah, _Intermediate Transfiguration_ and _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade Three,_" Leo informed the man.

Upon receiving their books, the two parted ways after Leo told his cousin that he had business to handle at Gringotts. He felt guilty for lying to Harry but knew it had to be done for Sirius' sake. He hesitated outside Ollivander's shop before taking a deep breath and striding inside, a loud tinkling filling the shop as he stepped inside. Mr. Ollivander appeared from between the shelves, not seeming at all surprised to see Leo there.

"Ah, Mr. Black, welcome back," Mr. Ollivander inclined his head slightly. "I figured you would return, though I expected it to be sooner."

"I feel like I should be insulted by that," Leo frowned.

"Not at all, Mr. Black, not at all," Mr. Ollivander replied cheerfully, reaching below the counter and pulling out a wand case. "I figured you might be by for this."

"What is it?" Leo inquired, striding closer.

"The wand of one Sirius Black," Mr. Ollivander responded, gaining a shocked look from Leo. "The Ministry tasked me with its disposal after your uncle's arrest. I could not bring myself to destroy such a finely crafted wand, so I kept it all these years. After his escape, well... my curiosity got the best of me and I examined the wand carefully and found that it had committed no dishonorable act. Unsurprising, given reed and dragon heartstring only attach themselves to the most loyal of wizards."

He met Leo's surprised expression, his own a mask of blank impassivity as he handed the box to the blonde.

"I trust you will get this to where it belongs?"

Leo only nodded mutely.

* * *

"Bloody hell, he kept it all these years?"

"That's what he said," Leo replied with a shrug, taking a bite out of his shepherd's pie.

It was dinnertime, and Leo had returned Sirius' wand to its very surprised rightful owner. Sirius had spent the next hour twirling it around, casting charms and eventually managing to turn Leo's hair an awful shade of lilac. Leo had scowled and drawn his own wand, and a very silly duel ensued.

Giant bubbles sprouted from their wands, releasing noxious gasses when popped. The floor was turned into a giant trampoline and the walls were decorated with a variety of bright, nauseating colors. When Kreacher came into the room to see what the commotion was all about, he nearly had a heart attack.

When Sirius commented that he was disappointed that Kreacher hadn't keeled over from shock, Leo hit him with a Scouring Charm and bubbles burst from his mouth. Sirius couldn't decide if he was proud or upset but retaliated with a Babbling Curse. Leo talked incessantly for two minutes before Sirius immediately regretted his decision and undid the curse. Afterward, the two sat down for dinner and Leo told the story of how he had obtained the wand.

"What would you have said if he hadn't given it to you?"

"Probably told him a basilisk ate my wand," Leo grinned, receiving a snort of laughter.

The sound of the front door opening and closing reached their ears followed by the sound of rapid footsteps as Remus descended the stairs and took his seat next to Leo. Kreacher set down a serving of shepherd's pie in front of him, mumbling under his breath as Remus politely thanked him.

"How'd the meeting with Dumbledore go?" Sirius asked, prompting Leo to glance up curiously as they both shoveled food in their mouths.

"He offered me a job as the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor," Remus replied, patting Leo on the back as he choked on his food.

"You're the new DADA professor?" Leo asked incredulously.

"You don't seem too thrilled with the idea," Remus responded, accepting the cup of tea Kreacher handed him and drinking it slowly.

"Well, I don't exactly have the best track record with them," Leo reminded him. "Killed one and put the other into a coma. Job outlook isn't looking too good for you, Moony."

Over the summer, he had told both Moony and Padfoot everything that had happened at the end of his first year. They were outraged and appalled by what Quirrell had done and, when Leo informed the pair that he had been the one to kill him, he found himself enveloped in a tight hug from both sides as well as heavy reassurance that he had done nothing wrong.

"To be fair, they were both gits who attacked you," Sirius replied, taking a bite of his pie. "They deserved what they got. Just a shame that you had to be the one to do it, kiddo."

"I made a vow to protect Harry no matter what," Leo responded with a small shrug, not really bothered by it much anymore. "Sometimes that involves doing the hard thing that no one else will do. I made peace with that after my duel with Riddle."

"That's very mature of you, Leo," Remus smiled proudly.

"Yeah," Sirius frowned, reaching over the table and putting a hand on Leo's forehead. "Are you feeling alright, kiddo?"

Remus had to hold Leo back as he tried to jump over the table.

* * *

**A/N: I just want to give a huge thank you to everyone who's been reviewing this story and the previous stories. It really means a lot to me and has been keeping me motivated to continue this story. Thank you all for your kind words and support!**


	3. Chapter 3: Cold

Chapter 3: Cold

_It's been cold lately for summer, a sure sign of the dementors' presence. Despite this, Reggie was excited to board the train for his first year of Hogwarts. He was also a bit nervous too at the thought of sitting by himself on the train, so I sat with him and some kid named Barty – it was his first year as well. He plied me with endless questions about Hogwarts and the Sorting. I made things up for the latter question. The Sorting should always have an air of mystery, after all._

* * *

The rest of August flew by in a haze of laughter and fun. Sirius and Leo often spent their time running around the house, casting various spells at each other and generally making quite a mess of things. When they weren't trying to tickle each other into submission or stick each other to ceilings, they set up pranks all over the house to the point where you could barely walk more than ten steps without bouncing into the air or getting covered in tar and feathers. Remus got hit with the latter of the two.

The Blacks thought it was hilarious until Remus glued their tongues to the roofs of their mouths until they decided to apologize or – in Leo's case – the spell wore off, which took a few hours. Even Sirius was impressed by his stubbornness. Now knowing that getting an apology from the boy was next to impossible, Remus instead made him sit down for the rest of the day and do nothing but homework. Leo put leftover color change potion in his tea as a form of revenge.

On the first of September near the crack of dawn, Leo and Remus bid farewell to Sirius and made their way to the Hogwarts Express before the station could become packed with students and teachers. Remus almost tripped on his way up the steps, exhausted after his transformation the previous night. Leo helped him up and led him to a compartment in the very back of the train. When his godfather was settled, he went back for their trunks and his empty owl cage – Apollo, as always, would fly ahead –and placed them in the racks above their heads. He then took a seat across from him next to the window, eyeing Remus warily as he drifted off to sleep.

Leo followed his lead, deciding he would rest until Harry and the rest of his friends came on board the train. A sharp whistle and movement sometime later awoke the blonde, alerting him that the train had started moving. He blinked the sleep from his eyes, yawning and turning his head as the compartment door opened, revealing Harry, Ron, and Hermione, who were all staring at him and Remus in bewilderment.

"Who is that?" Ron hissed as they sat down and slid the door shut, taking the seats farthest away from the window.

"New DADA professor," Leo replied with a small shrug.

"How d'you know that?"

"Why else would an old man be on a train full of kids? Besides, the job's open after Lockhart decided to take a nap," Leo grinned, still quite proud of that accomplishment.

The three snorted at this.

"Well, I hope he's up to it," said Ron doubtfully. "He looks like one good hex would finish him off, doesn't he? Anyway..." he turned to Harry, "what were you going to tell us?"

Leo leaned forward slightly, eyebrow quirking upward in mild amusement as Harry explained all about Mr. and Mrs. Weasley's argument and the warning Mr. Weasley had just given him about not going to look for Black. When he'd finished, Ron looked thunderstruck, and Hermione had her hands over her mouth. Leo just stared out the window, not trusting himself to not laugh at the thought of Sirius trying to kill Harry.

Hermione finally lowered her hands to say, "Sirius Black escaped to come after you? Oh, Harry... you'll have to be really, really careful. don't go looking for trouble, Harry..."

"I don't go looking for trouble," said Harry, nettled. "Trouble usually finds _me_." He paused before grinning widely. "And his name is Leo."

"That's fair," Leo smiled, turning back to face the group.

"How thick would Harry have to be, to go looking for a nutter who wants to kill him?" said Ron shakily. "I mean, Leo I could see doing that – he is barking -"

"I'm right here, you know," Leo reminded him in a very dry tone.

"No one knows how he got out of Azkaban," Ron continued uncomfortably. "No one's ever done it before. And he was a top-security prisoner too."

"But they'll catch him, won't they?" said Hermione earnestly. "I mean, they've got all the Muggles looking out for him too..."

Leo sincerely hoped not.

"What's that noise?" said Ron suddenly.

A faint, tinny sort of whistle was coming from somewhere. They looked all around the compartment.

"It's coming from your trunk, Harry," said Ron, standing up and reaching into the luggage rack. A moment later he had pulled the Pocket Sneakoscope out from between Harry's robes. It was spinning very fast in the palm of Ron's hand and glowing brilliantly.

"Is that a _Sneakoscope_?" said Hermione interestedly, standing up for a better look.

"Yeah... mind you, it's a very cheap one," Ron said. "It went haywire just as I was tying it to Errol's leg to send it to Harry. Leo's was going nuts too." He frowned, looking around. "How come yours isn't going off, Leo?"

"My dog got to it," he smirked, fondly recalling the memory.

Padfoot had tried sneaking into his room one night, hoping to scare him when he ended up getting scared himself by the Sneakoscope, which went wild at his presence. That had inspired Leo to carry it with him at all times so he would know when his uncle was coming. He found it later that same week chewed up in the drawing-room and had smacked Padfoot on the nose with a newspaper.

"You have a dog?" Hermione asked in intrigue. "Where is it?"

"Paddy's back at the house. Hogwarts isn't exactly the best place for him since he lacks the ability to behave himself."

Remus snorted in the corner where he was currently feigning sleep but managed to disguise it as a snore.

"Stick it back in the trunk," Harry advised as the Sneakoscope whistled piercingly, "or it'll wake him up."

He nodded toward Remus. Ron stuffed the Sneakoscope into a particularly horrible pair of Vernon's old socks, which deadened the sound, then closed the lid of the trunk on it.

"We could get it checked in Hogsmeade," said Ron, sitting back down. "They sell that sort of thing in _Dervish and Banges_, magical instruments and stuff. Fred and George told me."

"Do you know much about Hogsmeade?" asked Hermione keenly. "I've read it's the only entirely non-Muggle settlement in Britain —"

"Yeah, I think it is," said Ron in an offhand sort of way. "but that's not why I want to go. I just want to get inside Honeydukes!"

"What's that?" said Hermione.

"It's this sweetshop," said Ron, a dreamy look coming over his face, "where they've got everything... Pepper Imps — they make you smoke at the mouth — and great fat Chocoballs full of strawberry mousse and clotted cream, and really excellent sugar quills, which you can suck in class and just look like you're thinking what to write next–"

"You're going to go into a diabetic coma, Ron," Leo snorted.

"But Hogsmeade's a very interesting place, isn't it?" Hermione pressed on eagerly. "In Sites of Historical Sorcery it says the inn was the headquarters for the 1612 goblin rebellion, and the Shrieking Shack's supposed to be the most severely haunted building in Britain —"

Leo's eyes lit up excitedly. That was the first place he planned on going when he got to Hogsmeade. Despite knowing that the Shrieking Shack had never been haunted, he was looking forward to walking around in the same place the Marauders had essentially gotten their start.

"– and massive sherbet balls that make you levitate a few inches off the ground while you're sucking them," said Ron, who was plainly not listening to a word Hermione was saying.

Hermione looked around at Harry and Leo.

"Won't it be nice to get out of school for a bit and explore Hogsmeade?"

"'Spect it will," said Harry heavily. "You'll have to tell us when you've found out."

Leo was suddenly reminded that Harry didn't know that he had been able to get his form signed by Remus.

"What d'you mean?" said Ron.

"We can't go. The Dursleys didn't sign our permission forms, and Fudge wouldn't sign mine either."

Ron looked horrified.

"You're not allowed to come? But — no way — McGonagall or someone will give you permission —"

"Doubtful," Leo snorted. "Minnie bent the rules once to let us onto the Quidditch team, she's not going to play favorites and just let us into Hogsmeade."

"– or we can ask Fred and George, they know every secret passage out of the castle —"

"Ron!" said Hermione sharply. "I don't think Harry should be sneaking out of the school with Black on the loose —"

"Yeah, I expect that's what McGonagall will say when I ask for permission," said Harry bitterly.

"But if we're with him," said Ron spiritedly to Hermione. "Black wouldn't dare —"

"Right, four teenage wizards will have him quaking in his boots. I can just see it now," Leo rolled his eyes.

Hermione nodded in agreement, fumbling with the straps of a cat carrier as he spoke.

"Don't let that thing out!" Ron said, but too late; a great orange cat with a smushed face leaped lightly from the basket, stretched, yawned, and sprang onto Ron's knees; the lump in Ron's pocket trembled and he shoved the cat angrily away.

"Get out of it!"

"Ron, don't!" said Hermione angrily.

Ron was about to answer back when Remus stirred. They watched him apprehensively, but he simply turned his head the other way, mouth slightly open, and slept on.

The cat trotted over, jumping on the seat next to Leo, who ignored it, not being a big cat person. The cat – Crookshanks, Hermione informed him – meowed at him and his head snapped over to look at him. Crookshanks meowed a few more times and the blonde nodded thoughtfully before holding out his hand to shake Crookshanks' paw. _So, he knows Scabbers isn't really a rat. Smart fellow._

The Hogwarts Express moved steadily north and the scenery outside the window became wilder and darker while the clouds overhead thickened overhead. People were chasing each other backward and forwards past the door of their compartment. Crookshanks had now settled down in his spot next to Leo, his squashed face turned towards Ron, his yellow eyes on Ron's top pocket. Leo put his hand on Crookshanks's back. Now wasn't the time to grab Pettigrew.

At one o'clock the plump witch with the food cart arrived at the compartment door.

"D'you think we should wake him up?" Ron asked awkwardly, nodding towards Remus. "He looks like he could do with some food."

"He'll be fine," Leo waved a dismissive hand as he bought loads of Chocolate Frogs. "He looks like he needs more sleep than food at the moment."

"I suppose he is asleep?" said Ron quietly, as the witch slid the compartment door closed. "I mean — he hasn't died, has he?"

"Nah, I can still hear him breathing," Leo informed him, taking a bite out of his Chocolate Frog.

Mid-afternoon, just as it had started to rain, blurring the rolling hills outside the window, they heard footsteps outside in the corridor again, and their three least favorite people appeared at the door: Blaise Zabini, flanked by his cronies, Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle. Zabini had been at odds with Leo ever since the blonde had humiliated him at Lucius Malfoy's party last summer – and at various other points throughout the school year. It didn't help that Leo never once used his actual name.

"Linguini," Leo nodded his head as though this was a common occurrence. "Come along for your yearly dose of humiliation?"

"My name is Zabini and you damn well know it, Black," Zabini snarled, before calming himself and sporting his usual arrogant expression. "Bet you're real pleased that your mass-murdering uncle is on the loose."

"It has its perks," Leo shrugged. "Discount prices, free stuff thrown my way. The real advantage is the knowledge that not even an arrogant berk like you would be stupid enough to attack Sirius Black's nephew."

Zabini took a step forward and drew his wand, about to prove him wrong. Remus gave a snort.

"Who's that?" said Zabini, taking an automatic step backward as he spotted Remus.

"My new pygmy rhino – what the bloody hell do you think?" Leo rolled his eyes. "He's obviously our new teacher, you dolt."

Zabini's dark eyes narrowed; he wasn't fool enough to pick a fight right under a teacher's nose.

"C'mon," he muttered resentfully to Crabbe and Goyle, and they disappeared.

The rain thickened as the train sped yet farther north; the windows were now a solid, shimmering gray, which gradually darkened until lanterns flickered into life all along the corridors and over the luggage racks. The train rattled, the rain hammered, the wind roared, but still, Remus slept. Leo would've been concerned had he not seen this happen after the last full moon.

"We must be nearly there," said Ron, leaning forward to look past Remus and Leo at the now completely black window.

The words had hardly left him when the train started to slow down.

"Great," said Ron, getting up and walking carefully past Remus to try and see outside. "I'm starving. I want to get to the feast..."

"You're always starving, you glutton," Leo rolled his eyes.

"We can't be there yet," said Hermione, checking her watch.

"So why're we stopping?"

"Picking up stragglers?" Leo suggested.

The train was getting slower and slower. As the noise of the pistons fell away, the wind and rain sounded louder than ever against the windows. Harry, who was nearest the door, got up to look into the corridor. All along the carriage, heads were sticking curiously out of their compartments. The train came to a stop with a jolt, and distant thuds and bangs told them that luggage had fallen out of the racks. Then, without warning, all the lamps went out and they were plunged into total darkness. Leo flicked his wand out nervously, glancing at the spot he knew Remus was sitting.

"What's going on?" said Ron's voice.

"Ouch!" gasped Hermione. "Ron, that was my foot!"

"D'you think we've broken down?" Harry asked as he made his way back to his seat.

"Doubtful," Leo frowned, squinting out the window. "The train's magic, it won't just break down."

There was a squeaking sound, and Leo saw the dim black outline of Ron, wiping a patch clean on the window and peering out.

"There's something moving out there," Ron said. "I think people are coming aboard..."

The hairs on the back of Leo's neck prickled as he tightened his grip on his wand and rose to his feet, edging toward the door. When the door began to open, Leo almost fired off a _Depulso_ before stopping himself as third year Gryffindor Neville Longbottom came in and fell on Harry.

"Sorry! D'you know what's going on? Ouch! Sorry —"

"Hullo, Neville," Leo said dryly, reaching forward and pulling Neville to his feet.

"Leo? Is that you? What's happening?"

"Train stopped. Might have some unexpected guests," he informed him, pulling Neville onto a seat before heading back to the door.

As soon as he opened it, he felt something small run into his chest and heard a high-pitched squeal of shock.

"Bloody hell, can you tone it down?" Leo grumbled, rubbing his ears.

"Who is that?"

"Leo the magnificent. What're you doing here, Ginny?"

"I was looking for Ron —"

"Come in and sit down —"

"Not here!" said Harry hurriedly. "I'm here!"

"Ouch!" said Neville.

"Quiet!" said a hoarse voice suddenly.

Leo relaxed. Remus was finally awake. Things would surely be alright now, right?

There was a soft, crackling noise, and a shivering light filled the compartment. Remus appeared to be holding a handful of flames. They illuminated his tired, grey face, but his eyes looked alert and wary. Leo mentally scolded himself for not having thought of conjuring fire or, at the very least, lighting his wand.

"Stay where you are," he said in the same hoarse voice, and he got slowly to his feet with his handful of fire held out in front of him.

But the door slid slowly open in front of Leo before Remus could reach it.

Standing in the doorway, illuminated by the shivering flames in Remus' hand, was a cloaked figure that towered to the ceiling. Its face was completely hidden beneath its hood. Leo's eyes darted downward, and what he saw made his stomach contract. There was a hand protruding from the cloak and it was glistening, grayish, slimy-looking, and scabbed, like something dead that had decayed in water...

_Dementor._ Leo recalled the creature's name after the brief few minutes he had spent in Azkaban last summer. And then dementor drew a long, slow, rattling breath, as though it were trying to suck something more than air from its surroundings. An intense cold swept over them all. Even Leo, who was somewhat resistant to cold temperatures, felt his own breath catch in his chest. The cold went deeper than his skin. It was inside his chest, it was inside his very heart...

High-pitched screams filled his ears followed by a cold laugh. His breath came in quick, ragged gasps as he fought to pull oxygen into his lungs. His vision swam before his eyes, and shapes began to blur together as he collapsed, feeling arms catch him before he could hit the ground. The person said his name, but Leo could not respond as he struggled for air. The person said something else and a bright white light filled the compartment before it disappeared, taking the cold and the dementor with it.

The person holding Leo was speaking to him again in a calm, soothing voice that Leo tried hard to listen to. He focused on the sound, trying to focus only on it and push everything else away. His vision refocused, and he was now able to see that it was Remus who was holding him, telling him to breathe. Leo followed his instructions, inhaling and exhaling slowly just like Sirius had told him. After some time, his breathing returned to normal and Remus relaxed before handing him a piece of chocolate.

"Thanks," he mumbled, stuffing it in his mouth as Remus slowly sat him up.

"What happened? Where's that — that thing? Who screamed?" asked Harry's voice, and Leo turned his head to look at him.

He looked as bad as Leo felt. He was pale, with cold sweat on his face and looked as though he had come through several Cruciatus Curses – and Leo would know.

"No one screamed," said Ron in a nervous tone.

Leo frowned at this. He knew he heard screaming, and laughter. His expression paled. It had been Voldemort's laugh that he had heard. He'd heard it enough times to recognize it. Remus handed him another piece of chocolate and Leo took it, feeling slightly better upon eating it.

"But I heard screaming —"

A loud snap made them all jump. Remus was breaking an enormous slab of chocolate into pieces for the rest of them.

"Here," he said to Harry, handing him a particularly large piece. "Eat it. It'll help."

Harry took the chocolate but didn't eat it.

"What was that thing?" he asked Remus.

"Dementor," Leo mumbled, gaining everyone else's attention. "They're supposed to be guarding Azkaban. Dunno what they were thinking boarding a train full of kids."

Everyone stared at him. Remus crumpled up the empty chocolate wrapper and put it in his pocket.

"Eat," he repeated. "It'll help. I need to speak to the driver, excuse me..."

He strolled past Leo and disappeared into the corridor.

"Are you sure you're both okay?" said Hermione anxiously, looking back and forth between the two cousins.

"Ace. I fight dementors all the time," Leo replied sarcastically, eyeing everyone else's chocolate.

"I don't get it... what happened?" said Harry, wiping more sweat off his face.

"Well — that thing — the dementor — stood there and looked around (I mean, I think it did, I couldn't see its face) — and you — and Leo —"

"I thought you were having a fit or something," said Ron, who still looked scared. "You went sort of rigid and fell out of your seat and started twitching — Leo stopped breathing for a moment -"

"And Professor Lupin caught you, and looked up at the dementor, and pulled out his wand," said Hermione, "and he said, 'None of us is hiding Sirius Black under our cloaks. Go.' But the dementor didn't move, so Lupin muttered something, and a silvery thing shot out of his wand at it, and it turned around and sort of glided away..."

"It was horrible," said Neville, in a higher voice than usual. "Did you feel how cold it got when it came in?"

"I felt weird," said Ron, shifting his shoulders uncomfortably. "Like I'd never be cheerful again..."

Ginny, who was huddled in her corner looking nearly as bad as Harry and Leo felt, gave a small sob; Hermione went over and put a comforting arm around her.

"But didn't any of you — fall off your seats?" said Harry awkwardly.

"Didn't have a seat to fall out of, mate," Leo responded, reaching behind him to grab one of his Chocolate Frogs. "Wouldn't worry about it too much, Harry. Dementors are the worst -"

Remus had come back. He paused as he entered, looked around, and said, with a small smile, "I haven't poisoned that chocolate, you know..."

"I can vouch for that," Leo gave a small smile as he bit into his frog.

"We'll be at Hogwarts in ten minutes," said Remus. "Are you two alright?"

"Fine," Harry muttered, embarrassed.

"Few more packs of these and I'll be right as rain," Leo replied, holding up the remainder of his frog and stuffing it into his mouth.

They didn't talk much during the remainder of the journey. At long last, the train stopped at Hogsmeade station, and there was a great scramble to get outside; owls hooted, cats meowed, and Neville's pet toad croaked loudly from under his hat. It was freezing on the tiny platform; rain was driving down in icy sheets.

"Firs' years this way!" called a familiar voice. Leo, Harry, Ron, and Hermione turned and saw the gigantic outline of Hagrid at the other end of the platform, beckoning the terrified-looking new students forward for their traditional journey across the lake.

"All right, you four?" Hagrid yelled over the heads of the crowd.

They waved at him but had no chance to speak to him because the mass of people around them was shunting them away along the platform. The four followed the rest of the school along the platform and out onto a rough mud track, where at least a hundred stagecoaches awaited the remaining students, each pulled by the same skeletal horses Leo had seen last year. He made a mental note to ask Remus about them.

As the carriage trundled toward a pair of magnificent wrought iron gates, flanked with stone columns topped with winged boars, Leo saw two more towering, hooded dementors, standing guard on either side. As a wave of cold sickness threatened to engulf him again, he conjured a small flame with his wand and held it close to him, feeling a bit better as they went by. At last, the carriage swayed to a halt, and Hermione and Ron got out.

As Leo and Harry stepped down, an arrogant, delighted voice sounded in their ears.

"You fainted, Black? Is Longbottorn telling the truth? You and Potter actually fainted?"

Zabini elbowed past Hermione to block Leo and Harry's way up the stone steps to the castle, his face gleeful and his dark eyes glinting maliciously. A pale blonde boy appeared behind him, smirking as he strode toward the group. It was Draco Malfoy.

"You're one to talk, Zabini," Draco drawled. "Considering you nearly wet yourself running into my compartment and screaming like a little girl."

Leo and the Trio snorted with laughter as Zabini's face darkened with embarrassment and anger. He took a step toward Draco, drawing his wand.

"Is there a problem?" said a mild voice. Remus had just gotten out of the next carriage.

Zabini gave Remus an insolent stare, which took in the patches on his robes and the dilapidated suitcase. With a tiny hint of sarcasm in his voice, he said, "Oh, no — er — Professor," then he smirked at Crabbe and Goyle and led them up the steps into the castle.

Leo locked eyes with Draco, saying, "Target acquired."

Draco grinned maliciously in response and they hung back behind the Trio to discuss their potential plans for Zabini and his mates. They were just debating the potential merits and hilarity factor that would come from charming them to spontaneously burst into song every time they spoke when they reached the middle of the Entrance Hall.

The door into the Great Hall stood open at the right; Leo followed the crowd toward it, but had barely glimpsed the enchanted ceiling, which was black and cloudy tonight, when a voice called, "Black! Potter! Granger! I want to see you all three of you!"

"Just entered the castle and already in trouble, must be a new record for you," Draco snickered as he strode into the Great Hall without him.

Leo made a rude gesture before he turned around. Professor McGonagall, Transfiguration teacher and head of Gryffindor House, was calling over the heads of the crowd. She was a stern-looking witch who wore her hair in a tight bun; her sharp eyes were framed with square spectacles. Leo and his friends fought their way over to her with a feeling of foreboding: McGonagall had a way of making him feel he must have done something wrong – which, generally speaking, he usually had.

"There's no need to look so worried — I just want a word in my office," she told them.

"Last time I heard those words I got detention for a week," Leo remarked dryly.

Ron stared as McGonagall ushered the three away from the chattering crowd; they accompanied her across the entrance hall, up the marble staircase, and along a corridor.

Once they were in her office, a small room with a large, welcoming fire, McGonagall motioned for Leo, Harry, and Hermione to sit down. She settled herself behind her desk and said abruptly, "Professor Lupin sent an owl ahead to say that you two were taken ill on the train."

_Traitor._

Before either Harry or Leo could reply, there was a soft knock on the door and Madam Pomfrey, the nurse, came bustling in. Leo withheld a groan. This was wholly unnecessary in his opinion. Harry seemed to be of the same mind as his face turned bright red in embarrassment.

"I'm fine," he said, "I don't need anything —"

"Oh, it's you two, is it?" said Madam Pomfrey, ignoring this and bending down to stare closely at the two boys. "I suppose you've been doing something dangerous again?"

"Not _today_ -" Leo began.

"It was a dementor, Poppy," said McGonagall.

They exchanged a dark look, and Madam Pomfrey clucked disapprovingly.

"Setting dementors around a school," she muttered, pushing back Harry's hair and feeling his forehead. "He won't be the last one who collapses. Yes, he's all clammy. Terrible things, they are, and the effect they have on people who are already delicate —"

Leo snickered.

"I'm not delicate!" said Harry crossly.

"Of course you're not," said Madam Pomfrey absentmindedly, now turning to Leo who tried to swat her away and only stopped at McGonagall's stern look.

"What do they need?" said McGonagall crisply. "Bedrest? Should they perhaps spend tonight in the hospital wing?"

"Because that worked out so well the last time," Leo snorted.

After their adventure in the Chamber of Secrets last year, Madam Pomfrey had tried to force Leo to stay in the hospital wing for observation. Leo had promptly fled from the room with the matron yelling after him. Judging by the cross look on Madam Pomfrey's face, she clearly had not forgotten it either.

"Well, they should have some chocolate, at the very least," said Madam Pomfrey, who was now trying to peer into Harry's eyes.

"I've already had some," said Harry. "Professor Lupin gave me some. He gave it to all of us."

"Did he, now?" said Madam Pomfrey approvingly. "So we've finally got a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher who knows his remedies?"

"Are you sure you two feel all right?" McGonagall said sharply.

"Yes," said Harry.

"I'm eighty-five percent chocolate now, Professor," Leo grinned, almost bouncing in his seat.

"Very well. Kindly wait outside while I have a quick word with Miss Granger about her course schedule, then we can go down to the feast together."

Leo Harry went back into the corridor with Madam Pomfrey, who left for the hospital wing, muttering to herself. They had to wait only a few minutes; then Hermione emerged looking very happy about something, followed by McGonagall, and the four of them made their way back down the marble staircase to the Great Hall.

It was a sea of pointed black hats; each of the long House tables was lined with students, their faces glimmering by the light of thousands of candles, which were floating over the tables in midair. Professor Flitwick, who was a tiny little wizard with a shock of white hair, was carrying an ancient hat and a three-legged stool out of the hall.

"Oh," said Hermione softly, "we've missed the Sorting!"

"Not like we knew anyone anyway," Leo shrugged.

McGonagall strode off toward her empty seat at the staff table, and the three set off in the other direction, as quietly as possible, toward the Gryffindor table. People looked around at them as they passed along the back of the hall, and a few of them pointed at Harry and more than one stared fearfully at Leo. Leo blew those people kisses and waved, receiving scattered laughter as he sat across from Fred and George Weasley.

Dumbledore stood up.

"Welcome!" said Dumbledore, the candlelight shimmering on his beard. "Welcome to another year at Hogwarts! I have a few things to say to you all, and as one of them is very serious, I think it best to get it out of the way before you become befuddled by our excellent feast..."

Dumbledore cleared his throat and continued, "As you will all be aware after their search of the Hogwarts Express, our school is presently playing host to some of the dementors of Azkaban, who are here on Ministry of Magic business."

Leo personally thought it was a terrible idea to send soul-sucking monsters to a school full of children and couldn't help but wonder what Fudge was thinking. _Then again, this is also the same guy who was perfectly fine with trying to boot Dumbledore last year when the basilisk attacks were happening._ He recalled. Now he wondered how Fudge still had his job.

"They are stationed at every entrance to the grounds," Dumbledore continued, "and while they are with us, I must make it plain that nobody is to leave school without permission. Dementors are not to be fooled by tricks or disguises — or even Invisibility Cloaks," he added blandly. "It is not in the nature of a dementor to understand pleading or excuses. I, therefore, warn each and every one of you to give them no reason to harm you. I look to the prefects, and our new Head Boy and Girl, to make sure that no student runs afoul of the dementors."

Leo's desire to visit Hogsmeade was immediately swept away at this news. If he had to go by the dementors just to reach a village... well, the emotional trauma just wasn't worth it. Dumbledore had paused again; he looked very seriously around the hall, and nobody moved or made a sound.

"On a happier note," he continued, "I am pleased to welcome two new teachers to our ranks this year.

"First, Professor Lupin, who has kindly consented to fill the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher."

Leo cheered loudly, very audible amongst the scattered, rather unenthusiastic applause. Remus gave him a small smile and a minute incline of his head.

"As to our second new appointment," Dumbledore continued as the lukewarm applause for Remus died away. "Well, I am sorry to tell you that Professor Kettleburn, our Care of Magical Creatures teacher, retired at the end of last year in order to enjoy more time with his remaining limbs. However, I am delighted to say that his place will be filled by none other than Rubeus Hagrid, who has agreed to take on this teaching job in addition to his game-keeping duties."

Leo blinked before he joined in with the applause, which was tumultuous at the Gryffindor table in particular. He leaned forward to see Hagrid, who was ruby red in the face and staring down at his enormous hands, his wide grin hidden in the tangle of his black beard.

"Well, I think that's everything of importance," said Dumbledore. "Let the feast begin!"

The golden plates and goblets before them filled suddenly with food and drink. Leo, suddenly ravenous, helped himself to everything he could reach and began to eat.

It was a delicious feast; the hall echoed with talk, laughter, and the clatter of knives and forks. Leo informed Fred and George of some of the prank ideas he and Draco had come up with, and the two promptly offered their own ideas and tweaks to the boy's half-formed plans. By the end of the feast, they could all agree on one thing: the singing was definitely happening.

Leo ran up to Remus as soon as the feast ended, grinning widely as the werewolf thanked him for his support.

"I would've wolf-whistled, but I didn't want to give people the wrong idea," the blonde informed him.

"And which idea might that be?" Remus replied in a dry tone.

Leo frowned.

"I don't know."

McGonagall came by and shooed him along. He ran to catch up to the Trio as they joined the Gryffindors streaming up the marble staircase and, very tired now, along more corridors, up more and more stairs, to the hidden entrance to Gryffindor Tower, where a large portrait of a fat lady in a pink dress asked them, "Password?"

"Coming through, coming through!" Percy called from behind the crowd. "The new password's _Fortuna Major_!"

"Oh no," said Neville Longbottom sadly. He always had trouble remembering the passwords.

Through the portrait hole and across the common room, the girls and boys divided toward their separate staircases. Leo climbed the spiral stairs with no thought in his head except how glad he was to be back - though, admittedly, he did miss Padfoot. They reached their familiar, circular dormitory with its six four-poster beds, and Leo, looking around and spotting Ron setting Scabbers on his bed, had an intense feeling that this would be an interesting year.


	4. Chapter 4: Talons

**Chapter 4: Talons**

_Reggie got sorted into Slytherin like I thought he would. He spent too much time with our parents over the past two years, so it was inevitable. Siri thinks he's a lost cause now, but I won't give up on him. He's my brother. He's family. Nothing else matters but that._

* * *

Leo awoke early the next morning and immediately turned to look at Ron's bed, his eyes narrowed as he slowly crept over to it. He looked all around the bed for Pettigrew but found no sign of him. _He's either hiding or in bed with Ron... which is actually quite disturbing when you recall that he's a thirty-four-year-old man._ Leo shook his head in disgust as he got ready, packing his books and the Marauder's Map into his bag as he headed downstairs through the common room down the Grand Staircase and into the Great Hall.

He poured himself a glass of orange juice – he had always found pumpkin juice rather unsettling – before piling his plate with scrambled eggs, sausages, and potatoes. Fred and George joined him not long after, arriving with the other students slowly trickling into the Great Hall. McGonagall then came down the Gryffindor table, handing out schedules and asking Leo to give his friends theirs when they arrived. He gave a mock salute in response before looking over his schedule and noting that he had Ancient Runes first thing.

Harry suddenly appeared, dropping into a seat next to George. Hermione sat down beside him shortly after.

"New third-year course schedules," said Leo, passing them over.

"What's up with you, Harry?" George asked.

"Zabini," said Ron, sitting down on George's other side and glaring over at the Slytherin table.

Leo and George looked up in time to see Zabini pretending to faint with terror.

"That little git," George said calmly. "He wasn't so cocky last night when the Dementors were down at our end of the train. Came running into our compartment, didn't he, Fred?"

"Nearly wet himself," said Fred, with a contemptuous glance at Zabini.

"Draco said he screamed like a little girl," Leo grinned. "Wish I could've been there for that."

The twins chortled at this, recalling the incident before they both sobered up.

"I wasn't too happy myself," said George. "They're horrible things, those dementors..."

"Sort of freeze your insides, don't they?" said Fred.

"You didn't pass out, though, did you?" said Harry in a low voice.

"Forget it, Harry," said George bracingly. "Dad had to go out to Azkaban one time, remember, Fred? And he said it was the worst place he'd ever been, he came back all weak and shaking... They suck the happiness out of a place, dementors. Most of the prisoners go mad in there."

"Aye. Dementors bring out the worst memories in people," Leo said around a mouthful of sausage. "Given our history, it's no wonder we had such a negative reaction, Harry. Don't worry about what other people think, just focus on you."

Harry gave a grim sort of smile at this before helping himself to sausages and fried tomatoes. Hermione was examining her new schedule.

"Ooh, good, we're starting some new subjects today," she said happily.

"Hermione," said Ron, frowning as he looked over her shoulder, "they've messed up your timetable. Look — they've got you down for about ten subjects a day. There isn't enough time."

"I'll manage. I've fixed it all with Professor McGonagall."

"But look," said Ron, laughing, "see this morning? Nine o'clock, Divination. And underneath, nine o'clock, Ancient Runes. And —" Ron leaned closer to the timetable, disbelieving, "look— underneath that, Arithmancy, _nine o'clock_. I mean, I know you're good, Hermione, but no one's that good. How're you supposed to be in three classes at once?"

"Don't be silly," said Hermione shortly. "Of course I won't be in three classes at once."

"Well then —"

"Pass the marmalade," said Hermione.

"But —"

"Mind ya business, Ronald," Leo advised sagely. "Whatever Hermione's got going on in her life is her concern, not yours."

"Thank you, Leo," Hermione smiled pleasantly, receiving a mock salute from the boy.

Just then, Hagrid entered the Great Hall. He was wearing his long moleskin overcoat and was absent-mindedly swinging a dead polecat from one enormous hand.

"All righ'?" he said eagerly, pausing on his way to the staff table. "Yer in my firs' ever lesson! Righ' after lunch! Bin up since five gettin' everthin' ready... hope it's okay... me, a teacher... hones'ly..."

He grinned broadly at them and headed off to the staff table, still swinging the polecat.

"Wonder what he's been getting ready?" said Ron, a note of anxiety in his voice.

"Whatever it is, I hope it's dangerous," Leo grinned broadly.

The other three merely exchanged exasperated looks. The Hall was starting to empty, signaling to Leo that it was time to head to his first class. He followed the trio up the stairs before parting ways with them on the sixth floor. As he entered the classroom, he frowned in confusion as he spotted Hermione already sitting at a desk. For a moment, he debated questioning how she got there, then realized he didn't really care and sat down next to her.

She jumped slightly in surprise.

"I'm surprised you chose Ancient Runes, Leo."

"Yes, well, I needed two electives and this was the only other one besides Care of Magical Creatures that didn't make me want to drown myself in the lake," Leo replied airily as a snort of laughter sounded behind him.

He turned, grinning slightly to see that it was Draco, who sat down on Leo's other side and nodded politely to Hermione, who seemed unsure but nodded back nonetheless. They didn't have much time to talk before the bell rang and their Professor strode in, closing the door behind her.

Bathsheda Babbling was an olive-complected woman with dark hair and eyes who appeared to be in her mid-forties to early fifties. Her accent was English, tinted with some other country Leo couldn't quite identify. Greek, perhaps? He wasn't sure, nor could he think about it much further as Babbling dove headfirst into the lesson.

She drew various symbols on the chalkboard, explaining their meanings as everyone else hurriedly wrote them down. Leo wasn't going to at first until Draco thrust a piece of parchment and a quill in front of him and glared at him until he began writing. Hermione was surprised at first but then smiled gleefully as Leo finally took notes in a class that wasn't Potions.

Leo was only too happy to leave the class when the bell rang that he didn't even stop to say farewell to Draco and Hermione and instead booked it down to Transfiguration. Despite the record time he arrived, he was still surprised to see Hermione, Harry, and Ron barely make it to class, the latter two looking quite morose. The other Gryffindors that had taken Divination that morning also wore the same expression. _I knew trying to tell the future would be dead depressing but... damn. They look like someone killed their cat. Or rat._

When the bell rang, McGonagall dove into a lesson on Animagi, and Leo hung onto every word until he realized he had heard all this from both Sirius and Remus. He was, however, quite surprised when she turned into a tabby cat with spectacle markings around her eyes and was the only one who clapped when she turned back.

"Really, what has got into you all today?" said McGonagall, after she had turned back into herself with a faint _pop_, and staring around at them all. "Not that it matters, but that's the first time my transformation's not got applause from a class."

"I thought it was excellent," Leo informed her.

"Thank you, Black," McGonagall replied with a curt nod.

Hermione raised her hand.

"Please, Professor, we've just had our first Divination class, and we were reading the tea leaves, and —"

"Ah, of course," said McGonagall, suddenly frowning. "There is no need to say anymore, Miss Granger. Tell me, which of you will be dying this year?"

Everyone stared at her. Even Leo was curious.

"Me," said Harry, finally.

"Yeah, that sounds about right," Leo snorted, receiving glares from several students.

"I see," said McGonagall, fixing Harry with her beady eyes. "Then you should know, Potter, that Sybill Trelawney has predicted the death of one student a year since she arrived at this school. None of them has died yet. Seeing death omens is her favorite way of greeting a new class. If it were not for the fact that I never speak ill of my colleagues —" McGonagall broke off, and they saw that her nostrils had gone white. She went on, more calmly, "Divination is one of the most imprecise branches of magic. I shall not conceal from you that I have very little patience with it. True Seers are very rare, and Professor Trelawney..."

She stopped again, and then said, in a very matter-of-fact tone, "You look in excellent health to me, Potter, so you will excuse me if I don't let you off homework today. I assure you that if you die, you need not hand it in."

Leo laughed alongside Hermione at this, but they were the only ones. Harry managed a weak smile as everyone continued to look dour until Transfiguration class had finished and they joined the crowd thundering toward the Great Hall for lunch.

"Ron, cheer up," said Hermione, pushing a dish of stew toward him. "You heard what Professor McGonagall said."

Ron spooned stew onto his plate and picked up his fork but didn't start. Now even Leo was somewhat concerned. It's like when a dog stops eating – you know something's wrong.

"Harry," Ron said, in a low, serious voice, "You haven't seen a great black dog anywhere, have you?"

"Yeah, I have," said Harry. "Leo has one."

Ron let his fork fall with a clatter.

"It's just a dog, Ron," Hermione began calmly. "It's not like Leo would adopt a Grim -"

She stopped abruptly as Leo raised an eyebrow and she recalled who she was talking about. Leo was exactly the sort of person who would think adopting a Death Omen disguised as a dog was a brilliant idea.

"Hermione, if Harry's seen a Grim, that's — that's bad," he said. "My — my uncle Bilius saw one and — and he died twenty-four hours later!"

"Coincidence," said Hermione airily, pouring herself some pumpkin juice.

"You don't know what you're talking about!" said Ron, starting to get angry. "Grims scare the living daylights out of most wizards!"

"There you are, then," said Hermione in a superior tone. "They see the Grim and die of fright. The Grim's not an omen, it's the cause of death! And Harry's still with us because he's not stupid enough to see one and think, right, well, I'd better kick the bucket then!"

"I lived with Paddy the entire summer, and I'm still here – though, not for lack of trying on his part," Leo added after a moment of thought.

There had been several times during his and Sirius' duels and prank wars that Leo had either fallen down the stairs or over the railing. Sirius nearly had a heart attack until he ran down to check on him and found Leo lying there, laughing his head off and asking to do it again.

"That's because you're too mental to get scared," Ron groused as Leo shrugged in response, eating his soup.

"I think Divination seems very woolly," Hermione said as she flipped through her Arithmancy textbook. "A lot of guesswork, if you ask me."

"There was nothing woolly about the Grim in that cup!" said Ron hotly.

"You didn't seem quite so confident when you were telling Harry it was a sheep," said Hermione coolly as Leo snorted with laughter.

"Professor Trelawney said you didn't have the right aura! You just don't like being bad at something for a change!"

He had touched a nerve. Hermione slammed her Arithmancy book down on the table so hard that bits of meat and carrot flew everywhere.

"If being good at Divination means I have to pretend to see death omens in a lump of tea leaves, I'm not sure I'll be studying it much longer! That lesson was absolute rubbish compared with my Arithmancy class!"

She snatched up her bag and stalked away. Leo watched her for a moment before turning back and resuming his meal as though nothing had happened.

Leo was practically skipping out of the castle after lunch. Yesterday's rain had cleared; the sky was a clear, pale gray, and the grass was springy and damp underfoot as they set off for their first ever Care of Magical Creatures class.

Ron and Hermione weren't speaking to each other, leaving Leo and Harry to make idle yet awkward conversation with each other as they walked down the sloping lawns to Hagrid's hut on the edge of the Forbidden Forest. It was only when he spotted three only-too-familiar backs ahead of them that he realized they must be having these lessons with the Slytherins. Zabini was talking animatedly to Crabbe and Goyle, who were chortling. Leo just assumed that they were talking about the consistency of pudding or something equally as stupid.

Hagrid was waiting for his class at the door of his hut. He stood in his moleskin overcoat, with Fang the boarhound at his heels, looking impatient to start.

"C'mon, now, get a move on!" he called as the class approached. "Got a real treat for yeh today! Great lesson comin' up! Everyone here? Right, follow me!"

For one moment, Leo thought that Hagrid was going to lead them into the forest. However, he was disappointed when Hagrid strolled off around the edge of the trees, and five minutes later, they found themselves outside a kind of paddock. There was nothing in there. Or, well, at least there wasn't until a great black wolf appeared from between the trees and strode toward them. Lavender Brown let out a scream.

"It's the Grim!"

"That's not the Grim, you nutter," Leo rolled his eyes. "It's just Knight."

"Aye, he's a friendly sort, guards the forest," Hagrid informed the rest of the class with a grin before frowning and scratching his beard. "Bit odd ter see 'im out here though. Mus' be curious."

Knight leaped onto a modest-sized boulder and laid down with a small yawn, his head and forepaws hanging over the front as he watched them carefully with blue-grey eyes.

"Right," Hagrid called, clapping his hands. "Everyone gather 'round the fence here! That's it — make sure yeh can see — now, firs' thing yeh'll want ter do is open yer books —"

"How?" Draco asked with a frown.

"Eh?" said Hagrid.

"How do we open our books?" Draco repeated. He took out his copy of _The Monster Book of Monsters,_ which he had bound shut with a length of rope. Other people took theirs out too; some, like Harry, had belted their book shut; others had crammed them inside tight bags or clamped them together with binder clips. Leo had simply Stunned his, not wanting to be bothered with belting it shut.

"Hasn' — hasn' anyone bin able ter open their books?" said Hagrid, looking crestfallen.

The class all shook their heads.

"Yeh've got ter stroke 'em," said Hagrid, as though this was the most obvious thing in the world. "Look —"

He took Hermione's copy and ripped off the Spellotape that bound it. The book tried to bite, but Hagrid ran a giant forefinger down its spine, and the book shivered, and then fell open and lay quiet in his hand.

"Oh, how silly we've all been!" Draco rolled his eyes sarcastically. "We should have stroked them! Why didn't we guess!"

"I — I thought they were funny," Hagrid said uncertainly to Hermione.

"Oh, tremendously funny!" Zabini chimed in. "Really taking a page out of Black's book, giving us books that try and rip our hands off!"

"Shame you still have yours," Leo replied coolly. "Even worse that you still have your mouth attached. Guess some things are so big not even a monster can eat them."

Snickers followed this pronouncement as Zabini flushed furiously.

"Righ' then," said Hagrid, who seemed to have lost his thread, "so — so yeh've got yer books an'... an'... now yeh need the Magical Creatures. Yeah. So I'll go an' get 'em. Hang on..."

He strode away from them into the forest and out of sight. Draco took that moment to approach Leo and his group of friends.

"Your pal, Hagrid, isn't exactly starting his first lesson out at the top," the pale boy informed them dryly.

"Give him a mo', sometimes it takes a bit to build up steam," Leo shrugged.

Trotting toward them were a dozen of the most bizarre creatures Leo had ever seen. They had the bodies, hind legs, and tails of horses, but the front legs, wings, and heads of what seemed to be giant eagles, with cruel, steel-colored beaks and large, brilliantly, orange eyes. The talons on their front legs were half a foot long and deadly looking. Each of the beasts had a thick leather collar around its neck, which was attached to a long chain, and the ends of all of these were held in the vast hands of Hagrid, who came jogging into the paddock behind the creatures.

"Gee up, there!" he roared, shaking the chains and urging the creatures toward the fence where the class stood. Everyone but Leo – who was practically bouncing with excitement - drew back slightly as Hagrid reached them and tethered the creatures to the fence.

"Hippogriffs!" Hagrid roared happily, waving a hand at them. "Beau'iful, aren' they?"

Leo nodded eagerly. Once you got over the first shock of seeing something that was half-horse, half-bird, you started to appreciate the hippogriffs' gleaming coats, changing smoothly from feather to hair, each of them a different color: stormy grey, bronze, pinkish roan, gleaming chestnut, and inky black.

"So," said Hagrid, rubbing his hands together and beaming around, "if yeh wan' ter come a bit nearer..."

Hardly had the words left his mouth than Leo rushed forward, Harry, Ron, and Hermione following at a much slower pace.

"Now, firs' thing yeh gotta know abou' hippogriffs is, they're proud," said Hagrid. "Easily offended, hippogriffs are. Don't ever insult one, 'cause it might be the last thing yeh do."

Leo found he could relate to them on that front.

"Yeh always wait fer the hippogriff ter make the firs' move," Hagrid continued. "It's polite, see? Yeh walk toward him, and yeh bow, an' yeh wait. If he bows back, yeh're allowed ter touch him. If he doesn' bow, then get away from him sharpish, 'cause those talons hurt."

"Right — who wants ter go firs-"

Leo hopped the paddock fence before Hagrid could even finish talking, eliciting a chuckle from the man. Knight watched him carefully.

"Good man, Leo!" roared Hagrid. "Righ' then — let's see how yeh get on with Buckbeak."

He untied one of the chains, pulled the grey hippogriff away from its fellows, and slipped off its leather collar. The class on the other side of the paddock seemed to be holding its breath.

"Easy now, Leo," said Hagrid quietly. "Yeh've got eye contact, now try not ter blink... hippogriffs don' trust yeh if yeh blink too much..."

Leo grinned pleasantly at Buckbeak, who regarded him carefully with one fierce, orange eye.

"Pleasure to meet you, Buckbeak," Leo stated, giving a deep, flourishing bow. "I'm Leo."

Buckbeak gave a clip of his beak before he bent his scaly front knees and sank into what was an unmistakable bow.

"Well done, Leo!" said Hagrid, ecstatic. "Right — yeh can touch him! Pat his beak, go on!"

Leo had to stop himself from diving forward and practically hugging the hippogriff's feathered head. He took careful, steady steps toward Buckbeak before reaching out a hand and stroking his beak. Buckbeak closed his eyes lazily, as though enjoying it.

The class broke into applause, all except for Zabini, Crabbe, and Goyle, who were looking deeply disappointed.

"Righ' then, Leo," said Hagrid. "I reckon he migh' let yeh ride him!"

Leo looked as though Christmas had come early. He put his foot on the top of Buckbeak's wing and hoisted himself onto its back. Buckbeak stood up. Leo wasn't sure where to hold on; everything in front of him was covered with feathers. _Welp, learning is half the fun._ He shrugged.

"Go on, then!" roared Hagrid, slapping Buckbeak's hindquarters.

Without warning, twelve-foot wings flapped open on either side of Leo, he just had time to seize the Buckbeak around the neck before he was soaring upward. Leo whooped with laughter as Buckbeak's wings beat on either side of him, catching him under his legs and making him feel he was about to be thrown off; the glossy feathers slipped under his fingers and he didn't dare get a stronger grip; he now felt himself rocking backward and forward as the hindquarters of the hippogriff rose and fell with its wings. It was without a doubt the most harrowing experience Leo had ever had and he couldn't be more delighted.

All too soon, it ended. Buckbeak flew him once around the paddock and then headed back to the ground. Leo leaned back as the smooth neck lowered, feeling he was going to slip off over the beak, then felt a heavy thud as the four ill-assorted feet hit the ground. He just managed to hold on and push himself straight again.

"Good work, Leo!" roared Hagrid as everyone except Zabini, Crabbe, and Goyle cheered. "Okay, who else wants a go?"

Emboldened by Leo's success, the rest of the class climbed cautiously into the paddock. Hagrid untied the hippogriffs one by one, and soon people were bowing nervously, all over the paddock. Neville ran repeatedly backward from his, which didn't seem to want to bend its knees. Leo ran forward at once to mediate the situation, informing the black hippogriff – Fluxwing – that Neville was a nice sort of fellow who should be given a chance. Fluxwing had eyed them both suspiciously before sinking into a low bow and allowing Neville to pet him.

All was going well until a flash of light passed in front of him, startling Fluxwing who reared up on his hind legs and brought his talons downward. Toward Neville. Leo pushed him out of the way before putting his arms up in front of his face. Hagrid pulled him back, but it was too late. Fluxwing's claws scored down Leo's arms and blood blossomed over his robes as he fell to the ground.

A loud snarling filled his ears as a blur of black flew over him, followed by a high pitched scream. Knight had leaped from his perch, ran over Leo, and sank his fangs into Zabini's right arm, which tightly clutched a wand in it. _You bastard._ Leo thought weakly as Hagrid tried to convince Knight to release Zabini before he got his arm torn off. After a moment, he obliged, running off back into the Forbidden Forest.

"I'm dying!" Zabini yelled as the class panicked. "I'm dying, look at me! It's killed me!"

"Stop being a bitch, Linguini, you deserved it!" Leo roared angrily from where he lay.

"Yer not dyin'!" said Hagrid, who had gone very white. "Someone help me — gotta get them outta here —"

Hermione ran to hold open the gate as Hagrid lifted Leo easily and had Crabbe and Goyle carry Zabini. Leo rolled up his sleeves slightly, looking down at his arms to see long, red gashes over arms that were covered in so much blood he couldn't even see them. He looked over at Zabini to see his right arm looked just as bad as his, except Zabini kept moaning and screaming in pain. _Baby._


	5. Chapter 5: Fear

**Chapter 5: Fear**

_McGonagall went over Animagi the other day. James and Siri believe it's the answer to helping Remy. I'm way ahead of them._

* * *

Leo and Zabini weren't allowed to return to classes until late on Thursday morning when the Slytherins and Gryffindors were halfway through double Potions. Zabini swaggered into the dungeon, his right arm covered in bandages and bound up in a sling, acting as though he were the heroic survivor of some dreadful battle. Leo followed behind him, his expression irritated as his arms swung at his sides, covered in bandages.

Madam Pomfrey had done her best to heal them, but as they were inflicted by a magical creature, it proved to be somewhat difficult. As a result, though the gashes had mostly disappeared, there was still some tenderness left over to the point that Madam Pomfrey insisted his arms remained bandaged until the tenderness faded away. The blonde had no choice but to agree, given the alternative was remaining in the hospital wing until she released him. Fortunately, he still retained full-functionality of his arms, which came as a great relief to Leo as he contemplated smothering Zabini in his sleep that night.

"How is it, Blaise?" simpered Pansy Parkinson. "Does it hurt much?"

"Yeah," said Zabini, putting on a brave sort of grimace.

Leo threw a glare at him as he flopped into his seat next to Draco.

"Five points from Gryffindor for your lateness, Black," said Snape idly.

Leo scowled but refrained from saying anything when Draco gave him a pointed stare. They were making a new potion today, a Shrinking Solution. Zabini set up his cauldron right next to Leo and Draco so that they were preparing their ingredients on the same table. Harry and Ron sat in front of them on the opposite side of the table.

"Sir," Zabini called, "sir, I'll need help cutting up these daisy roots, because of my arm —"

"Weasley, cut up Zabini's roots for him," said Snape without looking up.

Ron went brick red.

"There's nothing wrong with your arm," he hissed at Zabini.

This was true. Leo had personally seen Madam Pomfrey completely heal the boy's mutilated arm to the point where it looked as though nothing happened to it – though, if you looked closely enough, you could find faint scars where Knight had bitten him.

Zabini smirked across the table.

"Weasley, you heard Professor Snape; cut up these roots."

Ron seized his knife, pulled Zabini's roots toward him, and began to chop them roughly so that they were all different sizes.

"Professor," drawled Zabini, "Weasley's mutilating my roots, sir."

Snape approached their table, stared down his hooked nose at the roots, then gave Ron an unpleasant smile from beneath his long, greasy black hair.

"Change roots with Zabini, Weasley."

"But, sir —

"_Now_," said Snape in his most dangerous voice.

Ron shoved his own beautifully cut roots across the table at Zabini, then took up the knife again.

"And, sir, I'll need this shrivelfig skinned," said Zabini, his voice full of malicious laughter.

"Black, you can skin Zabini's shrivelfig," said Snape, giving Leo the look of loathing he always reserved just for him and Harry.

"Yeah, I'll get right on that," Leo snorted, flailing his arms. "Right after my arms heal from the damage Linguini caused."

"Another five points from Gryffindor for your backtalk, Black," Snape sneered before assigning Harry the shrivelfig and flouncing away.

A few cauldrons away, Neville was in trouble. Neville regularly went to pieces in Potions lessons; it was his worst subject, and his great fear of Snape made things ten times worse. His potion, which was supposed to be bright, acid green, had turned —

"Orange, Longbottom," said Snape, ladling some up and allowing to splash back into the cauldron, so that everyone could see.

"Orange. Tell me, boy, does anything penetrate that thick skull of yours? Didn't you hear me say, quite clearly, that only one cat spleen was needed? Didn't I state plainly that a dash of leech juice would suffice? What do I have to do to make you understand, Longbottom?"

Neville was pink and trembling. He looked as though he was on the verge of tears.

"Please, sir," said Hermione, "please, I could help Neville put it right —"

"I don't remember asking you to show off, Miss Granger," said Snape coldly, and Hermione went as pink as Neville. "Longbottom, at the end of this lesson we will feed a few drops of this potion to your toad and see what happens. Perhaps that will encourage you to do it properly."

Snape moved away, leaving Neville breathless with fear.

"Help me!" he moaned to Hermione.

"Hey, Harry," said Seamus Finnigan, leaning over to borrow Harry's brass scales, "have you heard? _Daily Prophet_ this morning — they reckon Sirius Black's been sighted."

Leo's head jerked up at once. Sirius was supposed to be at Grimmauld right now while he and Remus worked on getting Pettigrew.

"Where?" said Harry and Ron quickly.

"Not too far from here," said Seamus, who looked excited. "It was a Muggle who saw him. 'Course, she didn't really understand. The Muggles think he's just an ordinary criminal, don't they? So she phoned the telephone hotline. By the time the Ministry of Magic got there, he was gone."

Leo withheld a groan at his uncle's stupidity. Not only had he gone against his and Moony's wishes, but he had also been seen. _That great big bloody git._ Leo seethed. _Next time I see him, he's getting the newspaper _and_ the spray bottle._

"You should have finished adding your ingredients by now; this potion needs to stew before it can be drunk, so clear away while it simmers and then we'll test Longbottom's..." Snape called.

Crabbe and Goyle laughed openly, watching Neville sweat as he stirred his potion feverishly. Hermione was muttering instructions to him out of the corner of her mouth so that Snape wouldn't see. Leo and Draco packed away their unused ingredients and went to wash their hands and ladles in the stone basin in the corner.

The end of the lesson in sight, Snape strode over to Neville, who was cowering by his cauldron.

"Everyone gather 'round," said Snape, his black eyes glittering, "and watch what happens to Longbottom's toad. If he has managed to produce a Shrinking Solution, it will shrink to a tadpole. If, as I don't doubt, he has done it wrong, his toad is likely to be poisoned."

Leo felt this was a very cruel experiment, even by Snivellus' standards.

Snape picked up Trevor the toad in his left hand and dipped a small spoon into Neville's potion, which was now green. He trickled a few drops down Trevor's throat.

There was a moment of hushed silence, in which Trevor gulped; then there was a small pop, and Trevor the tadpole was wriggling in Snape's palm. The Gryffindors burst into applause. Snape, looking sour, pulled a small bottle from the pocket of his robe, poured a few drops on top of Trevor, and he reappeared suddenly, fully grown.

"Five points from Gryffindor," said Snape, which wiped the smiles from every face. "I told you not to help him, Miss Granger. Class dismissed."

Leo, Harry, Ron, and Hermione climbed the steps to the entrance hall, Ron still seething about Snape.

"Five points from Gryffindor because the potion was all right! Why didn't you lie, Hermione? You should've said Neville did it all by himself!"

"Right, because Snape would've believed her, right?" Leo rolled his eyes when Hermione didn't answer.

Ron looked around.

"Where is she? She was right behind us."

"There she is," said Harry.

Hermione was panting slightly, hurrying up the stairs; one hand clutched her bag, the other seemed to be tucking something down the front of her robes.

"How did you do that?" said Ron.

"What?" said Hermione, joining them.

"One minute you were right behind us, the next moment, you were back at the bottom of the stairs again."

"Hermione's secretly half house-elf," Leo informed the ginger.

Hermione shot him a grateful look, having been saved from having to respond to Ron's question. A small tearing sound was heard. A seam had split on Hermione's bag. Leo wasn't surprised; he could see that it was crammed with at least a dozen large and heavy books.

"Why are you carrying all these around with you?" Ron asked her.

"You know how many subjects I'm taking," said Hermione breathlessly. "Couldn't hold these for me, could you?"

"But —" Ron was turning over the books she had handed him, looking at the covers. "You haven't got any of these subjects today. It's only Defense Against the Dark Arts this afternoon."

"Oh yes," said Hermione vaguely, but she packed all the books back into her bag just the same. "I hope there's something good for lunch, I'm starving," she added, and she marched off toward the Great Hall.

"D'you get the feeling Hermione's not telling us something?" Ron asked Harry and Leo.

"All the time. Only difference is, I don't care," Leo rolled his eyes before strolling after her.

Remus wasn't there when they arrived at his first Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson. They all sat down, took out their books, quills, and parchment, and were talking when he finally entered the room. Remus smiled vaguely and placed his tatty old briefcase on the teacher's desk. He was as shabby as ever but looked healthier than he had on the train, as though he had had a few square meals. Leo thought that having a few days without the full moon looming over him had helped.

"Good afternoon," he said. "Would you please put all your books back in your bags. Today's will be a practical lesson. You will need only your wands."

A few curious looks were exchanged as the class put away their books. They had never had a practical Defense Against the Dark Arts class before unless you counted the memorable class last year when their old teacher had brought a cageful of pixies to class and set them loose. Leo still liked to fondly recall that day, since he had later released those pixies in Lockhart's office.

"Right then," said Remus, when everyone was ready. "If you'd follow me."

Puzzled but interested, the class got to its feet and followed Remus out of the classroom. He led them along the deserted corridor and around a corner, where the first thing they saw was Peeves the Poltergeist, who was floating upside down in midair and stuffing the nearest keyhole with chewing gum.

Peeves didn't look up until Remus was two feet away; then he wiggled his curly-toed feet and broke into song.

"Loony, loopy Lupin," Peeves sang. "Loony, loopy Lupin, loony, loopy Lupin —"

"You could try to be a bit more creative, Peeves," Leo remarked dryly. "Alliteration is a bit old hat and unoriginal – especially for you."

Peeves made a rude gesture and blew a loud, wet raspberry.

Remus gave a small sigh and took out his wand.

"This is a useful little spell," he told the class over his shoulder. "Please watch closely."

He raised the wand to shoulder height, said, "_Waddiwasi!_" and pointed it at Peeves.

With the force of a bullet, the wad of chewing gum shot out of the keyhole and straight down Peeves's left nostril; he whirled upright and zoomed away, cursing. Leo gave a slow clap in response.

"Cool, sir!" said Dean Thomas in amazement.

"Thank you, Dean," said Remus, putting his wand away again. "Shall we proceed?"

They set off again, the class looking at Remus with increased respect. He led them down a second corridor and stopped, right outside the staffroom door.

"Inside, please," said Remus, opening it and standing back.

The staffroom, a long, paneled room full of old, mismatched chairs, was empty except for one teacher. Snape was sitting in a low armchair, and he looked around as the class filed in. His eyes were glittering and there was a nasty sneer playing around his mouth. As Remus came in and made to close the door behind him, Snape said, "Leave it open, Lupin. I'd rather not witness this." He got to his feet and strode past the class, his black robes billowing behind him. At the doorway, he turned on his heel and said, "Possibly no one's warned you, Lupin, but this class contains Neville Longbottom. I would advise you not to entrust him with anything difficult. Not unless Miss Granger is hissing instructions in his ear."

Leo opened his mouth to inform the Potions professor to keep his bullying to his own classroom when Remus put a hand on his shoulder and gave a small shake of his head. He pouted, folding his arms across his chest.

"I was hoping that Neville would assist me with the first stage of the operation," Remus said, "and I am sure he will perform it admirably."

Snape's lip curled, but he left, shutting the door with a snap.

"Now, then," said Remus, beckoning the class toward the end of the room, where there was nothing but an old wardrobe where the teachers kept their spare robes. As Remus went to stand next to it, the wardrobe gave a sudden wobble, banging off the wall. Leo looked at it with great interest.

"Nothing to worry about," said Remus calmly because a few people had jumped backward in alarm. "There's a boggart in there."

Most people seemed to feel that this _was _something to worry about. Neville gave Remus a look of pure terror, and Seamus Finnigan eyed the now rattling doorknob apprehensively.

"Boggarts like dark, enclosed spaces," said Remus. "Wardrobes, the gap beneath beds, the cupboards under sinks — I've even met one that had lodged itself in a grandfather clock. This one moved in yesterday afternoon, and I asked the headmaster if the staff would leave it to give my third years some practice.

"So, the first question we must ask ourselves is, what is a boggart?"

Hermione put up her hand.

"It's a shape-shifter," she said. "It can take the shape of whatever it thinks will frighten us most."

Leo's face paled considerably at this. He was well aware of what his greatest fear was. Even after almost a year and a half, it still had not changed.

"Couldn't have put it better myself," said Remus, and Hermione glowed. "So the boggart sitting in the darkness within has not yet assumed a form. He does not yet know what will frighten the person on the other side of the door. Nobody knows what a boggart looks like when he is alone, but when I let him out, he will immediately become whatever each of us most fears.

"This means," said Remus, choosing to ignore Neville's small sputter of terror, "that we have a huge advantage over the boggart before we begin. Have you spotted it, Harry?"

"Er — because there are so many of us, it won't know what shape it should be?"

"Precisely," said Remus, and Hermione put her hand down, looking a little disappointed. "It's always best to have company when you're dealing with a boggart. He becomes confused. Which should he become, a headless corpse or a flesh-eating slug? I once saw a boggart make that very mistake — tried to frighten two people at once and turned himself into half a slug. Not remotely frightening.

"The charm that repels a boggart is simple, yet it requires force of mind. You see, the thing that really finishes a boggart is laughter. What you need to do is force it to assume a shape that you find amusing.

"We will practice the charm without wands first. After me, please... _riddikulus_!"

"_Riddikulus!_" said the class together.

"Good," said Remus. "Very good. But that was the easy part, I'm afraid. You see, the word alone is not enough. And this is where you come in, Neville."

The wardrobe shook again, though not as much as Neville, who walked forward as though he were heading for the gallows.

"Right, Neville," said Remus. "First things first: what would you say is the thing that frightens you most in the world?"

Neville's lips moved, but no noise came out.

"I didn't catch that, Neville, sorry," said Remus cheerfully.

Neville looked around rather wildly, as though begging someone to help him, then said, in barely more than a whisper, "Professor Snape."

"There's something very wrong here if Snape's your greatest fear," Leo stated as everyone around him laughed, feeling as though Snape should have long-since been fired.

"Professor Snape... hmmm... Neville, I believe you live with your grandmother?" Remus said thoughtfully.

"Er — yes," said Neville nervously. "But — I don't want the boggart to turn into her either."

Leo snorted at this.

"No, no, you misunderstand me," said Remus, now smiling. "I wonder, could you tell us what sort of clothes your grandmother usually wears?"

Neville looked startled, but said, "Well... always the same hat. A tall one with a stuffed vulture on top. And a long dress... green, normally... and sometimes a fox-fur scarf."

"And a handbag?" prompted Remus.

"A big red one," said Neville.

"Right then," said Remus. "Can you picture those clothes very clearly, Neville? Can you see them in your mind's eye?"

"Yes," said Neville uncertainly, plainly wondering what was coming next.

"When the boggart bursts out of this wardrobe, Neville, and sees you, it will assume the form of Professor Snape," said Remus. "And you will raise your wand — thus — and cry '_Riddikulus_' — and concentrate hard on your grandmother's clothes. If all goes well, Professor Boggart Snape will be forced into that vulture-topped hat, and that green dress, with that big red handbag."

There was a great shout of laughter. The wardrobe wobbled more violently.

"If Neville is successful, the boggart is likely to shift his attention to each of us in turn," said Remus. "I would like all of you to take a moment now to think of the thing that scares you most, and imagine how you might force it to look comical..."

Leo didn't need to think about it. _I'm a Gryffindor._ He told himself firmly. _Gryffindors face their fears, not run from them._ Remus locked eyes with him across the room and he nodded determinedly. Remus inclined his head in acceptance. He would allow Leo to tackle the boggart.

"Everyone ready?" said Remus.

Leo nodded, rolling up his sleeves and flicking his wand into his hand.

"Neville, we're going to back away," said Remus. "Let you have a clear field, all right? I'll call the next person forward... Everyone back, now, so Neville can get a clear shot —"

They all retreated, backed against the walls, leaving Neville alone beside the wardrobe. He looked pale and frightened, but he had pushed up the sleeves of his robes and was holding his wand ready.

"On the count of three, Neville," said Remus, who was pointing his own wand at the handle of the wardrobe. "One — two — three —_now!_"

A jet of sparks shot from the end of Remus's wand and hit the doorknob. The wardrobe burst open. Hook-nosed and menacing, Snape stepped out, his eyes flashing at Neville.

Neville backed away, his wand up, mouthing wordlessly. Snape was bearing down upon him, reaching inside his robes.

"R — r — _riddikulus!_" squeaked Neville.

There was a noise like a whip crack. Snape stumbled; he was wearing a long, lace-trimmed dress and a towering hat topped with a moth-eaten vulture, and he was swinging a huge crimson handbag.

There was a roar of laughter; the boggart paused, confused, and Remus shouted, "Parvati! Forward!"

Parvati walked forward, her face set. Snape rounded on her. There was another crack, and where he had stood was a bloodstained, bandaged mummy; its sightless face was turned to Parvati and it began to walk toward her very slowly, dragging its feet, its stiff arms rising —

"_Riddikulus_!" cried Parvati.

A bandage unraveled at the mummy's feet; it became entangled, fell face forward, and its head rolled off.

"Seamus!" roared Remus.

Seamus darted past Parvati.

_Crack!_ Where the mummy had been was a woman with floor-length black hair and a skeletal, green-tinged face — a banshee. She opened her mouth wide and an unearthly sound filled the room, a long, wailing shriek that made the hair on Leo's head stand on end — "_Riddikulus_!" shouted Seamus.

The banshee made a rasping noise and clutched her throat; her voice was gone.

_Crack_! The banshee turned into a rat, which chased its tail in a circle, then —_crack_! - became a rattlesnake, which slithered and writhed before —_crack_! — becoming a single, bloody eyeball.

"It's confused!" shouted Remus. "We're getting there! Dean!"

Dean hurried forward.

_Crack_! The eyeball became a severed hand, which flipped over and began to creep along the floor like a crab.

"_Riddikulus_!" yelled Dean.

There was a snap, and the hand was trapped in a mousetrap.

"Excellent! Ron, you next!"

Ron leaped forward.

_Crack!_

Quite a few people screamed. A giant spider, six feet tall and covered in hair, was advancing on Ron, clicking its pincers menacingly. For a moment, Leo thought Ron had frozen. Then —

"_Riddikulus_!" bellowed Ron, and the spider's legs vanished; it rolled over and over; Lavender Brown squealed and ran out of its way and it came to a halt at Leo's feet.

_Crack_! A pale young man appeared, a purple turban wrapped around his head. The students looked on in confusion – why was stuttering old Quirrell Leo's fear? Quirrell raised his wand, his mouth opening to say -

"_Riddikulus_!" Leo bellowed, pointing his wand at him.

Quirrell's turban lengthened, wrapping itself down and around the man's body until he toppled to the floor, rolling to stop at Harry's feet.

"Here!" shouted Remus suddenly, hurrying forward. _Crack!_

Quirrell disappeared. For a second, everyone looked wildly around to see where it was. Then they saw a silvery-white orb hanging in the air in front of Remus, who said, "_Riddikulus_!" almost lazily.

_Crack!_

"Forward, Neville, and finish him off!" said Remus as the boggart landed on the floor as a cockroach. _Crack!_ Snape was back. This time Neville charged forward looking determined.

"_Riddikulus_!" he shouted, and they had a split second's view of Snape in his lacy dress before Neville let out a great "Ha!" of laughter, and the boggart exploded, burst into a thousand tiny wisps of smoke, and was gone.

"Excellent!" cried Remus as the class broke into applause. "Excellent, Neville. Well done, everyone... Let me see... five points to Gryffindor for every person to tackle the boggart — ten for Neville because he did it twice... and five each to Hermione and Harry."

"But I didn't do anything," said Harry.

"You and Hermione answered my questions correctly at the start of the class, Harry," Remus said lightly. "Very well, everyone, an excellent lesson. Homework, kindly read the chapter on boggarts and summarize it for me... to be handed in on Monday. That will be all. Leo, if you could hold back a moment?"

Leo nodded as the class shuffled past him, talking animatedly about the lesson. Remus waited for the last person to leave before pointing his wand at the door, locking it. He sat on the edge of a table, and Leo did the same.

"First off, I wanted to apologize for not visiting you in the hospital wing -"

"Don't worry about it," Leo waved his hand dismissively. "We're supposed to keep the fact that we know each other under wraps. You couldn't have visited without giving yourself away."

"Even so," Remus frowned guiltily. "How're your arms?"

"Tender, sore. But, at least I can still use them. Pomfrey said they should be better by Monday," Leo shrugged before frowning as he recalled Potions. "Did you hear about Sirius?"

"Yes," Remus said in a dry tone. "Needless to say, I was not pleased. He's going to end up getting himself caught at this rate."

"Tell me about it," Leo rolled his eyes. "I know I'm reckless, but Pads takes it to a whole new level. Next thing you know, he's going to be breaking into the school flailing a knife."

"I don't think Sirius would be _that_ reckless."

"A month of no homework says you're wrong."

"If I'm not, you do double."

"Deal."


	6. Chapter 6: Called It

**Chapter 6: Called It**

_First Hogsmeade visit is coming up. My mates and I are planning on going to Zonko's and Honeydukes before heading off to the Shrieking Shack and then rounding it all off with a trip to the Three Broomsticks. Seems like just the quiet, uneventful day I need._

* * *

By the time Monday rolled around, Leo was practically ripping the bandages from his arms and tossing them into the nearest fire. He was relieved to have his arms unbound and displayed the scars on them with a faint note of pride. There were three long, thin, pink lines going diagonally across the tops of each of his forearms. Pomfrey informed him that they would eventually fade somewhat and become far less noticeable. He was mildly disappointed to hear that.

He felt that scars should be worn – displayed, even – with pride. They showed the trials and suffering someone had gone through. They told stories, either of brave heroics or cowardice. He didn't believe scars made you weak or that you should be ashamed of them – like Remus was of his – he was of the firm mind that they made you stronger than most, a lesson he tried and failed many a time to impart on his godfather.

Neville had gone deathly pale at seeing his arms and had blubbered profusely about how sorry he was and that he was a coward and all the other nonsense Leo eventually tuned out. He finally told Neville that if it was anyone's fault, it was Linguini's. Linguini had been the one to fire off the spell, knowing that Fluxwing would attack and that Leo – brave, reckless, and fiercely protective as he was – would most assuredly jump in front of Neville to protect him.

Fred and George, who were eavesdropping on this particular conversation, took that moment to grab Leo by the arms and haul him bodily from the room down to the hidden passage on the fourth floor. Leo stood there, bewildered as the two left, returning minutes later with Draco. The four sat down in a circle, plotting their revenge on Zabini that would have to be humiliating and hilarious in order to be satisfying.

After an hour of discussion, they managed to come up with something that fit both those criteria: singing the truth. They were still very much in love with the idea of having Zabini sing every time he tried to talk – but how could they make it better? The answer had been simple: use a truth-telling potion.

Draco informed them that Snape kept spare Veritaserum in his potions cupboard that would be easy enough to grab. All he needed was a distraction. Leo grinned evilly at this before whispering to the twins exactly what he would need.

The very next day found Leo standing in the middle of the dungeons, wearing a long, lace-trimmed dress and a towering hat topped with a moth-eaten vulture, and swinging a huge crimson handbag. He put on his most Snape-ish, drawling voice as he scolded the Weasley twins for everything from being Gryffindors to having freckles – pretty much anything Snape would have yelled at them for. While everyone was gathering around them, laughing uproariously, Snape strode toward him, looking more infuriated than Leo had ever seen him. This was a bonus, considering Snape had docked him points just for showing up injured. As Snape was busy docking more points and assigning detention, Draco snuck into his office unseen and came back with a small vial of Veritaserum.

At breakfast the next morning, Leo had Draco distract Zabini whilst he – hidden under Harry's Invisibility Cloak – poured both the Veritaserum and the Singing Concoction into his morning pumpkin juice. He dove out of the Great Hall, removing the cloak and striding back in nonchalantly just in time to hear Zabini belting out a few lines about how his favorite color was actually red and he had a secret crush on Celestina Warbeck. Leo was barely able to high-five the twins under the table as he and everyone else were laughing too hard.

What really made it interesting was when the twins cast a Babbling Curse on Zabini so he couldn't stop. It was definitely the proudest moment for the Minirauders, made better by the fact that since they had left no evidence behind of who had actually done the deed, they were left unpunished. Leo was a bit upset at this, wanting some credit for what he believed was a work of art.

Thankfully, word traveled around much of Gryffindor tower until everyone – with the exception of Percy – knew what Leo and his friends had done. And, because he couldn't help himself, Leo told Remus. He tried to give him a stern lecture at first – trying to recall that he was a professor – but didn't get very far before his lips started twitching and he began laughing. Leo wanted to tell Sirius about it, then remembered he was supposed to be mad at him as well as the fact that he feared someone would follow Apollo to wherever his uncle was if he sent a letter.

The month of September flew by in a bit of a haze for Leo, who was only able to dimly recall that he and the Weasleys had spent nearly every day scrubbing cauldrons or sorting out potions ingredients for Snape. Still, they couldn't complain. The laughs and revenge had been well worth the price they had to pay.

At the start of October, however, they had something else to occupy them, something so enjoyable it more than made up for the boring, tedious detentions. The Quidditch season was approaching, and Oliver Wood, Captain of the Gryffindor team, called a meeting on Thursday evening to discuss tactics for the new season.

Leo had mainly tuned out, figuring the twins or Harry would summarize whatever was discussed and give him the main points. He was taken out of his stupor somewhat when Wood gave a rousing, passionate speech about how this was his last year to win the Quidditch Cup, and he wanted to go out with two wins under his belt.

Full of determination, the team started training sessions, three evenings a week. The weather was getting colder and wetter, the nights darker, but no amount of mud, wind, or rain could tarnish Leo's joy at finally finishing his detentions and being up in the air again.

Leo and Harry returned to the Gryffindor common room one evening after training, cold and stiff but pleased with the way practice had gone, to find the room buzzing excitedly.

"What's happened?" Harry asked Ron and Hermione, who were sitting in two of the best chairs by the fireside and completing some star charts for Astronomy.

"Did the Chudley Cannons finally win a game?" Leo added, sitting on the ground and leaning next to the fireplace with his hands behind his head.

Ron threw him a very dirty look.

"First Hogsmeade weekend," said Hermione, pointing at a notice that had appeared on the battered old bulletin board. "End of October. Halloween."

"Excellent," said Fred, who had followed them through the portrait hole. "I need to visit Zonko's. I'm nearly out of Stink Pellets."

"See if they've got any biting doorknobs or shrinking keys," Leo requested. "Promise, I'll pay you back."

"And what, little lion, would you ever want those for?" George inquired with a wicked grin.

Leo merely pressed a finger to his lips and gave a roguish wink. The twins chortled at this before heading upstairs to shower and change. The blonde turned his attention back to the conversation his other friends had continued without him.

"They can't be the only third years left behind," Ron was saying. "Ask McGonagall, go on, Harry —"

"Yeah, I think I will," said Harry.

Personally, Leo thought this was a stupid idea. Harry was about as likely to convince McGonagall to let him go as Leo was to convince Snape he was secretly a moose in disguise. Spoiler: it didn't go well.

Hermione opened her mouth, perhaps to vocalize what Leo was thinking, but at that moment Crookshanks leaped lightly onto her lap. A large, dead spider was dangling from his mouth.

"Does he have to eat that in front of us?" said Ron, scowling.

"Clever Crookshanks, did you catch that all by yourself?" said Hermione.

"Keep up the practice, mate," Leo winked at the orange puffball.

Crookshanks purred, slowly chewing up the spider with his yellow eyes fixed insolently on Ron.

"Just keep him over there, that's all," said Ron irritably, turning back to his star chart. "I've got Scabbers asleep in my bag."

Leo's eyes immediately locked onto Ron's bag, and his were not the only ones. Crookshanks glared at the trembling bulge nestling near the bottom of the bag, his gaze hungry as he prepared himself to pounce whilst the other three continued to converse. Leo opened his mouth to tell him not to – this was hardly the place to do it, after all – when, without warning, he pounced.

"OI!" Ron roared, seizing his bag as Crookshanks sank four sets of claws deep inside it and began tearing ferociously. "GET OFF, YOU STUPID ANIMAL!"

Ron tried to pull the bag away from Crookshanks, but Crookshanks clung on, spitting and slashing. Leo did not see this ending well.

"Ron, don't hurt him!" squealed Hermione; the whole common room was watching; Ron whirled the bag around, Crookshanks still clinging to it, and Scabbers came flying out of the top —

Leo was disappointed when he didn't land in the fireplace.

"CATCH THAT CAT!" Ron yelled as Crookshanks freed himself from the remnants of the bag, sprang over the table, and chased after the terrified Scabbers.

Leo idly lifted his legs up as the two ran past, not really doing anything to help or hinder the chase. Scabbers streaked through twenty pairs of legs and shot beneath an old chest of drawers. Crookshanks skidded to a halt, crouched low on his bandy legs, and started making furious swipes beneath it with his front paw.

Ron and Hermione hurried over; Hermione grabbed Crookshanks around the middle and heaved him away; Ron threw himself onto his stomach and, with great difficulty, pulled Scabbers out by the tail.

"Look at him!" he said furiously to Hermione, dangling Scabbers in front of her. "He's skin and bone! You keep that cat away from him!"

"Crookshanks doesn't understand it's wrong!" said Hermione, her voice shaking. "All cats chase rats, Ron!"

"There's something funny about that animal!" said Ron, who was trying to persuade a frantically wiggling Scabbers back into his pocket. "It heard me say that Scabbers was in my bag!"

_There's nothing wrong with that cat – but everything wrong with that rat._ Leo thought darkly as he glared at Scabbers with a look of utmost loathing on his face. Crookshanks pushed his way out of Hermione's arms and trotted toward Leo, meowing. Leo raised an eyebrow.

"Oh no, mate, you're not getting any help from me," the blonde informed him, flicking him on the nose when he gave an indignant meow.

Crookshanks swatted a clawed paw at him.

"I told you to wait, and you didn't listen," Leo hissed in a low voice. "You made your bed, so now you have to lie in it."

Crookshanks huffed at him before trotting away, fur slightly bristling as he headed for the girls' dormitory. Leo merely rolled his eyes in response.

The next day, they had Herbology, followed by Transfiguration. Harry was bound and determined to ask McGonagall for permission for him and Leo – who really didn't want to go after discovering he'd have to walk past dementors – to go to Hogsmeade. He drug his cousin to the line outside the class where they soon became quite distracted.

Lavender Brown seemed to be crying. Parvati had her arm around her and was explaining something to Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas, who were looking very serious.

"What's the matter, Lavender?" said Hermione anxiously as she, Harry, Leo, and Ron went to join the group.

"She got a letter from home this morning," Parvati whispered. "It's her rabbit, Binky. He's been killed by a fox."

"Oh," said Hermione. "I'm sorry, Lavender."

"I should have known!" said Lavender tragically. "You know what day it is?"

"Er —"

"Sixteenth of October," Leo shrugged, receiving stares from his friends. "What? If I'm going to constantly mock the Dursleys for not knowing their days, I have to know mine."

Lavender nodded, sobbing louder.

"'That thing you're dreading, it will happen on the sixteenth of October!' Remember? She was right, she was right!"

"What is she on about?" Leo whispered to Harry, his brow furrowed in confusion.

"Trelawney made a prediction – guess it's true," he shrugged in response.

"Oh," Leo frowned. "I met her in the hall the other day, she told me I'd get mauled by a werewolf before the year was up. Lovely lady."

Harry and Ron snorted before they turned back to the conversation.

"-Well, look at it logically," Hermione was saying, turning to the rest of the group. "I mean, Binky didn't even die today, did he? Lavender just got the news today —" Lavender wailed loudly. "– and she can't have been dreading it because it's come as a real shock —"

"Don't mind Hermione, Lavender," said Ron loudly, "she doesn't think other people's pets matter very much."

"Maybe it's just yours, Ron," Leo suggested, receiving a glare. "I personally think your rat matters very little -"

McGonagall opened the classroom door at that moment, which was perhaps lucky; Ron looked as though he was ready to tackle Leo to the ground and strangle him. Hermione and Harry sat between the two, hoping to put some distance between them.

They spent the lesson transfiguring a cat into a cauldron – something only Hermione and Leo ended up achieving. When the bell rang for the end of the lesson, Leo was fully prepared to dash out of the room and spend his lunch break having tea with Remus. Unfortunately, old Minnie wasn't quite done.

"One moment, please!" she called as the class made to leave. "As you're all in my House, you should hand Hogsmeade permission forms to me before Halloween. No form, no visiting the village, so don't forget!"

Neville put up his hand.

"Please, Professor, I — I think I've lost —"

"Your grandmother sent yours to me directly, Longbottom," said McGonagall. "She seemed to think it was safer. Well, that's all, you may leave."

Leo immediately dashed from the room, not wanting to join in Harry's hare-brained scheme of asking the dragon lady for permission to go to a wizarding village. He may be reckless some (all) of the time, but he wasn't stupid. Even if he did give McGonagall his signed permission slip, he doubted she'd let him go. His – supposedly – mass-murdering uncle was out there looking for Harry and (most likely) him. At least that's what Remus said was the word going out amongst the staff.

On Halloween morning, Leo awoke with the rest and went down to breakfast, feeling just as boisterous as ever – a stark contrast to the depressed mood Harry found himself in.

"We'll bring you lots of sweets back from Honeydukes," said Hermione, looking desperately sorry for him.

"Yeah, loads," said Ron.

"Don't worry about us," said Harry, in what he hoped was an offhand voice, "We'll see you at the feast. Have a good time."

"I know we will," Leo grinned, wrapping an arm around Harry's shoulders.

They accompanied their friends to the entrance hall, where Filch, the caretaker, was standing inside the front doors, checking off names against a long list, peering suspiciously into every face, and making sure that no one was sneaking out who shouldn't be going.

"Staying here, Black?" shouted Zabini, who was standing in line with Crabbe and Goyle. "Scared of passing the dementors?"

"Nah, just got tired of seeing your face in the castle – didn't want to see it in Hogsmeade too," Leo shrugged nonchalantly as Draco snorted with laughter.

Zabini's face – as per usual – flushed darkly in anger. Unfortunately, there wasn't much he could do with an authority figure like Filch standing so close by. The two separated from their friends with a wave of their hands. Harry tried to get them to head back to Gryffindor Tower, but Leo didn't want to deal with the munchkins that were too young to go to Hogsmeade.

Instead, he led his cousin up to Remus' office, informing him that their Defense professor was supposed to be getting a new creature brought in. Harry didn't question how he knew this, knowing that Leo would only respond mysteriously with answers such as 'I have my ways' or, occasionally, 'a werewolf told me'. He wasn't in the mood to hear any sarcastic responses from the boy and so stood behind him while he knocked on the door.

It opened after a few seconds.

"Harry? Leo?" Remus questioned, mildly surprised to see Harry. "What are you doing? Where are Ron and Hermione?"

"Having tea with dementors," Leo grinned.

"In Hogsmeade," said Harry, wanting to give an actual explanation.

"Ah," said Remus, his lips twitching slightly. "Why don't you come in? I've just taken delivery of a grindylow for our next lesson."

"A what?" said Harry.

Leo merely bounced excitedly as they followed Remus into his office. In the corner stood a very large tank of water. A sickly green creature with sharp little horns had its face pressed against the glass, pulling faces and flexing its long, spindly fingers.

"Water demon," said Remus, surveying the grindylow thoughtfully. "We shouldn't have much difficulty with him, not after the kappas. The trick is to break his grip. You notice the abnormally long fingers? Strong, but very brittle."

The grindylow bared its green teeth and then buried itself in a tangle of weeds in a corner. Leo wrinkled his nose in distaste. If it was underwater, he couldn't set it on fire. If he couldn't deal with an enemy by setting them alight, he simply did not want to deal with them.

"Cup of tea?" Remus said, looking around for his kettle. "I was just thinking of making one."

"Yes..._please_," Leo added on at Remus' stern look.

Remus had been trying to hammer manners into the boy since the beginning of summer with mixed results. He tapped the kettle with his wand and a blast of steam issued suddenly from the spout.

"Sit down," said Remus, taking the lid off a dusty tin. "I've only got teabags, I'm afraid — but I daresay you've had enough of tea leaves?"

Harry looked at him as Leo snorted with laughter. Remus' eyes were twinkling in the same manner they had been when he had glued Leo's tongue to the roof of his mouth.

"How did you know about that?" Harry asked.

"Professor McGonagall told me," said Remus, passing Harry and Leo each a chipped mug of tea. "You're not worried, are you?"

"No," said Harry.

"Good," Leo remarked, sipping his tea. "Trelawney's an old fraud who makes stabs in the dark and hopes they land."

"You're still upset she told you you'd be mauled by a werewolf, aren't you?" Harry smirked, missing as Remus' face paled considerably.

"Yeah, she could've at least made my death more believable – like getting choked out by a dementor or getting sat on by a boggart," Leo snorted as Harry's face darkened. "'Mauled by a werewolf'...as if!"

Noticing Harry's expression and wanting to turn the topic away from werewolves, Remus said, "Anything worrying you, Harry?"

"No," Harry lied. He drank a bit of tea and watched the grindylow brandishing a fist at him. "Yes," he said suddenly, putting his tea down on Remy's desk. "You know that day we fought the boggart?"

"Yes," said Remus slowly, exchanging a swift glance with Leo as though wondering where this was going.

"Why didn't you let me fight it?" said Harry abruptly.

Remus raised his eyebrows.

"I would have thought that was obvious, Harry," he said, sounding surprised.

Harry looked taken aback.

"Why?" he said again.

"Well," said Remus, frowning slightly, "I assumed that if the boggart faced you, it would assume the shape of Lord Voldemort."

"Nah," Leo informed him, sipping his tea. "After seeing him two years in a row and sending him packing each time, old Moldywarts isn't that spooky anymore. He's become a bit old hat, to be perfectly honest."

"Well, then clearly, I was wrong," Remus inclined his head, still frowning at Harry. "But I didn't think it a good idea for Lord Voldemort to materialize in the staffroom. I imagined that people would panic."

"Can't possibly imagine why," Leo snorted.

"I didn't think of Voldemort," said Harry honestly. "I — I remembered those dementors."

Leo paused in the midst of drinking his tea to give a small shudder.

"I see," said Remus thoughtfully. "Well, well... I'm impressed." He smiled slightly at the look of surprise on Harry's face. "That suggests that what you fear most of all is — fear. Very wise, Harry."

"Don't think Harry's ever been called wise before – you might have just made his day," Leo snickered into his cup as Harry gave him a half-hearted glare.

"Be nice, Leo," Remus chastised him, though he couldn't help but give a small smile at the way the two interacted.

"Yeah, Leo, be nice."

"Get bent, Potter -"

Leo was interrupted – quite rudely, he might add - by a knock on the door.

"Come in," called Remus.

The door opened, and in came Snape. He was carrying a goblet, which was smoking faintly, and stopped at the sight of Leo and Harry, his black eyes narrowing. Leo gave a friendly wiggle of his fingers, knowing it would irk the man. He was proven correct when a muscle in Snape's forehead twitched slightly.

"Ah, Severus," said Remus, smiling. "Thanks very much. Could you leave it here on the desk for me?"

Snape set down the smoking goblet, his eyes wandering between the cousins and Remus.

"I was just showing the boys my grindylow," said Remus pleasantly, pointing at the tank.

"Fascinating," said Snape, without looking at it. "You should drink that directly, Lupin."

"Yes, Yes, I will," said Remus.

"I made an entire cauldronful," Snape continued. "If you need more."

"I should probably have some again tomorrow. Thanks very much, Severus."

"Not at all," said Snape as he backed out of the room, unsmiling and watchful.

Harry looked curiously at the goblet while Leo sipped his tea, already knowing what it was. Remus smiled.

"Professor Snape has very kindly concocted a potion for me," he said. "I have never been much of a potion-brewer and this one is particularly complex." He picked up the goblet and sniffed it. "Pity sugar makes it useless," he added, taking a sip and shuddering.

"Why -?" Harry began before Leo interrupted him.

"Perhaps there's some sort of charm that can alter your taste buds?" the blonde suggested. "Maybe it can make the potion taste better since you can't alter it directly?"

Remus nodded thoughtfully, seeming to consider the idea before he answered Harry's unfinished question.

"I've been feeling a bit off-color," he said. "This potion is the only thing that helps. I am very lucky to be working alongside Professor Snape; there aren't many wizards who are up to making it."

"Professor Snape's very interested in the Dark Arts," Harry blurted out.

Leo raised an eyebrow. Everyone and their mum knew that. It's what made Snape so special.

"Really?" said Remus, looking only mildly interested as he took another gulp of potion.

"Some people reckon —" Harry hesitated, then plunged recklessly on, "some people reckon he'd do anything to get the Defense Against the Dark Arts job."

_Ah_. Leo nodded slowly as Remus drained the last of his goblet and made a face similar to the one Leo made when he was forced to eat brussel sprouts. _I think I know what he's getting at_.

"Disgusting," Remus said. "Well, Harry, I'd better get back to work. See you at the feast later. Leo, if you could remain behind? I had some questions to ask you about your last essay..."

Leo nodded as Harry bid them both farewell, exiting the room and closing the door behind him. The blonde raised an eyebrow at the still-smoking goblet on Moony's desk.

"Think Harry reckons Snape's trying to poison you for your job," he informed the man as Remus poured more tea into his cup.

"Much as he would like to, I don't think he would with Dumbledore around," Remus replied in a mild tone. "What's this I hear about you getting mauled by a werewolf?"

Leo chuckled.

"I wouldn't worry too much about it, Moony," he waved a dismissive hand. "Trelawney also said I was born under the unluckiest stars she had ever seen for someone born in the month of November."

Remus raised an eyebrow.

"You were born at the end of July."

"Exactly."

Remus snorted before switching to a different topic that had him grinning broadly.

"Month's almost up."

Leo suppressed a groan. They had set a time limit on the deal they had made near the beginning of September. If Sirius didn't break into the school before the first of November, Remus would win the bet and Leo would have to do double the amount of homework that he usually did. They also added a specificity clause that stated that if Sirius broke in flailing a knife, Leo wouldn't have to do homework for the rest of the year. Remus was quite certain that wouldn't happen.

"Night's not over yet, Moon-Moon," Leo informed him, idly drinking his tea. "Still have until midnight to win."

"Bit optimistic about your chances, are you?"

"I have to be, otherwise I might start crying."

Remus laughed heartily at this before allowing him to finish his tea and head up to Gryffindor tower after Harry. He and Harry played Exploding Snap (Harry accused him multiple times of cheating, to which Leo gave a mock-affronted look) until one by one people started trickling in from Hogsmeade. As Hermione and Ron entered, dropping piles of sweets on his and Harry's laps, Fred and George nonchalantly strolled by, placing a Zonko's bag near Leo's feet whilst the boy put several gold coins in George's hands.

Hermione and Ron told them all about Hogsmeade, which Leo thought sounded brilliant until he recalled that there were still dementors about. Afterward, Harry told them about Snape and the goblet. Ron's mouth fell open at this.

"_Lupin drank it_?" he gasped. "Is he mad?"

Hermione checked her watch.

"We'd better go down, you know, the feast'll be starting in five minutes." They hurried through the portrait hole and into the crowd, still discussing Snape.

"But if he — you know —" Hermione dropped her voice, glancing nervously around, "if he _was_ trying to — to poison Lupin — he wouldn't have done it in front of Harry and Leo."

"I reckon he would," Leo shrugged, gaining worried looks from the three. "But he wouldn't do it with Dumbledore around."

"Since when did you become pro-Dumbledore?" Harry asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I'm not. I just don't think Snape would be stupid enough to go around poisoning people while the old man's around," Leo informed them. "Otherwise, he'd have poisoned me weeks – no, _years_ – ago."

The three snorted at this as they reached the entrance hall and crossed into the Great Hall. It had been decorated with hundreds and hundreds of candle-filled pumpkins, a cloud of fluttering live bats, and many flaming orange streamers, which were swimming lazily across the stormy ceiling like brilliant watersnakes. Leo was disappointed there weren't any dancing skeletons this year.

The food was delicious; even Hermione and Ron, who were full to bursting with Honeydukes sweets, managed second helpings of everything. Leo remarked that they'd end up going into a food coma and never wake up. He got rolls thrown at him, one of which he caught in his mouth and proceeded to eat, much to their amusement.

The feast finished with entertainment provided by the Hogwarts ghosts. They popped out of the walls and tables to do a bit of formation gliding; Nearly Headless Nick, the Gryffindor ghost, had great success with a reenactment of his own botched beheading. Leo kept asking him to do it again, earning a look from the ghost that was a mixture of amused and flabbergasted.

It had been such a pleasant evening that Leo's good mood couldn't even be spoiled by Zabini, who shouted through the crowd as they all left the hall, "The dementors send their love, Black!"

"Tell your mother she can keep it!" Leo shouted back, receiving gales of laughter from all around. "I'm not into old hags!"

Zabini was jostled away by the crowd before he could respond.

Leo, Harry, Ron, and Hermione followed the rest of the Gryffindors along the usual path to Gryffindor Tower, but when they reached the corridor that ended with the portrait of the Fat Lady, they found it jammed with students.

"Why isn't anyone going in?" said Ron curiously.

"Maybe somebody's food baby got too big and now they're stuck in the portrait hole?" Leo suggested, receiving odd looks from everyone around him.

"Let me through, please," came Percy's voice, and he came bustling importantly through the crowd. "What's the holdup here? You can't all have forgotten the password — excuse me, I'm Head Boy —"

And then a silence fell over the crowd, from the front first, so that a chill seemed to spread down the corridor. They heard Percy say, in a sudden sharp voice, "Somebody get Professor Dumbledore. Quick."

People's heads turned; those at the back were standing on tiptoe.

"What's going on?" said Ginny, who had just arrived.

A moment later, Professor Dumbledore was there, sweeping toward the portrait; the Gryffindors squeezed together to let him through, and Leo, Harry, Ron, and Hermione moved closer to see what the trouble was.

"Oh, my —" Hermione grabbed Harry's arm as Leo face-palmed.

The Fat Lady had vanished from her portrait, which had been slashed so viciously that strips of canvas littered the floor; great chunks of it had been torn away completely. Dumbledore took one quick look at the ruined painting and turned, his eyes somber, to see McGonagall, Remus, and Snape hurrying toward him.

"We need to find her," said Dumbledore. "Professor McGonagall, please go to Mr. Filch at once and tell him to search every painting in the castle for the Fat Lady."

"You'll be lucky!" said a cackling voice.

It was Peeves the Poltergeist, bobbing over the crowd and looking delighted, as he always did, at the sight of wreckage or worry.

"What do you mean, Peeves?" said Dumbledore calmly, and Peeves' grin faded a little. He didn't dare taunt Dumbledore. Instead, he adopted an oily voice that was no better than his cackle.

"Ashamed, Your Headship, sir. Doesn't want to be seen. She's a horrible mess. Saw her running through the landscape up on the fourth floor, sir, dodging between the trees. Crying something dreadful," he said happily. "Poor thing," he added unconvincingly.

"Did she say who did it?" said Dumbledore quietly.

"Oh yes, Professorhead," said Peeves, with the air of one cradling a large bombshell in his arms. "He got very angry when she wouldn't let him in, you see." Peeves flipped over and grinned at Dumbledore from between his own legs. "Nasty temper he's got, that Sirius Black."

Everyone was silent for a moment before Leo called out, "Did he have a knife?"

Everyone turned to look at him, even Remus seemed quite disapproving. Leo looked around, frowning at everyone before throwing his hands up.

"What? I think we deserve to know if he's armed!"

There were murmurs of agreement before Dumbledore turned back to Peeves, inclining his head slightly. Peeves gave a delighted cackle before informing them that Sirius Black had, indeed, been seen flailing a knife around.

It took everything in Leo not to smirk at Remus triumphantly. _Called it._

* * *

**A/N:**

**Apologies for not updating last Sunday. I had a very stressful week (not that it's gotten much better) and spent pretty much all of Sunday ensuring my mother had the best birthday possible, given the circumstances.**


	7. Chapter 7: The Vow

**Chapter 7: The Vow**

_I can't shut it off – can't make it stop. Ever since I chased those dementors away the other day in Hogsmeade...it - it unlocked something inside me. A power I never knew I had, and I can't turn it off. When I get angry or upset...__things start to freeze. A cold chill settles over as though a dementor is present, even when there's none around. What's wrong with me?_

* * *

Dumbledore sent them to the Great Hall that night, wherein they also found everyone from the other three Houses looking confused and bewildered. He informed them all that they would be sleeping here while they searched the school. Then, with two waves of his wand, he pushed the four long house tables to the edges of the hall and conjured up a great many squishy purple sleeping bags.

Leo grabbed one, wrinkling his nose in distaste before changing the color to hot pink and nodding in satisfaction. Draco came over at that moment, dragging him by the arm over to the Weasley twins where he demanded to know what happened. The three filled him in – Leo hovering somewhere between annoyance and amusement at his uncle's actions – on what Peeves had told them before they debated how Black had managed to enter and leave the castle without anyone noticing.

Leo thought he knew – he had used one of the secret passages out of the school. Padfoot was a Marauder, after all, he had helped create the Map and thus knew where all the secret passages were. He reckoned Sirius knew the school even better than himself and the Weasley twins. He didn't say any of this though. He merely speculated along with the rest of the school about where Sirius Black was now – which he also had a theory about.

The following morning, classes were canceled after the teachers failed to find Sirius. The students – most of them having spent the majority of the night awake – tramped back to their dorms in order to get a more restful sleep. Except for Leo, anyway.

Wide awake and feeling a bit jittery, he was one of the few that sat at the House tables for breakfast, idly stealing toast, bacon, and sausages and putting them in his bag before departing the Great Hall and making his way outside. He walked down the lawn toward the Whomping Willow – a rather violent tree that had a tendency to swing wildly at anyone or anything that got too close. With a wave of his wand and a few mumbled words, he levitated a stick and had it prod a knot in the tree's trunk. As Moony and Padfoot told him would happen, the tree froze.

He ran to the hidden passage between a large gap in the roots and crawled forward, headfirst, and slid down an earthy slope to the bottom of a very low tunnel. With a mumbled _Lumos,_ Leo continued down the long, winding passage until he came out of a hole into a very disordered, dusty room. Paper was peeling from the walls; there were stains all over the floor; every piece of furniture was broken as though somebody had smashed it. The windows were all boarded up.

"_Sirius_!" he hissed in a loud whisper. "It's me, Leo! Come out!"

He heard a creak from upstairs and the sound of rapid pawsteps making their way down a flight of stairs. A black, furry head peeked its way into the room and stared at Leo for a moment before bounding forward, wagging his tail and sniffing his bag with an excited whine. Leo raised an eyebrow before Padfoot sat down and looked up at him with wide eyes, giving a small, pleading whine for good measure. Leo snorted.

"You're lucky I brought you anything, you mangy mutt," Leo grumbled, fixing and cleaning off a side table and dumping the contents of his bag on it. "Between you and that bloody cat, it's a wonder Pettigrew hasn't scarpered yet."

Padfoot returned to human form, stuffing a piece of bacon in his mouth as he repaired the couch and sat on it, Leo accompanying him.

"What cat?" the man asked, stuffing another piece of bacon in his mouth.

"Crookshanks - my friend Hermione's cat. He knows Scabbers – Pettigrew – isn't really a rat and goes after him every chance he gets," Leo rolled his eyes. "It's made Ron paranoid to the point where he carries the rat with him everywhere he goes. Makes it a bit difficult to get him – and you don't help matters, you git."

"If you're going to yell at me, get on with it, _Moony_," Sirius rolled his eyes as he idly munched on some toast.

"I'm taking that as a compliment rather than the insult you meant it as, dog breath," Leo replied in a dry tone. "And normally I would yell at you but, thanks to you, I have a year of no homework in Defense. So... I'll just say you're a reckless moron and be done with it."

Sirius snorted as he stuffed sausage in his mouth.

"How'd you manage to get out of doing homework?" he inquired.

"Made a bet with Remy," Leo shrugged before grinning widely. "I said you'd break into the school flailing a knife before November first. He disagreed, saying you wouldn't be that reckless. Look who was wrong."

"Are you a Seer or something?" Sirius frowned. "How do you call something that specific?"

"... Because it's what I would've done," Leo mumbled, receiving a bark-like laugh in response. "Why were you using a knife anyway? You have your w- oh. I get it. You broke out of Azkaban so how could you have a wand? Nice, surprisingly clever for you, Pads."

"Prat."

"I love you too."

* * *

The school talked of nothing but Sirius Black for the next few days. The theories about how he had entered the castle became wilder and wilder; Hannah Abbott, from Hufflepuff, spent much of their next Herbology class telling anyone who'd listen that Black could turn into a flowering shrub. Sirius couldn't stop laughing for a long time after Leo told him.

Leo had taken to visiting his uncle every lunch break – usually with food. He filled Sirius in on the goings-on within the castle and the various pranks he and the Minirauders played on the unsuspecting denizens of the castle. While Sirius appreciated the information and enjoyed the stories, he was itching to go back to the castle for another shot at Pettigrew. Thankfully, Leo managed to convince him to wait, stating that the castle was now on high alert and it would be much more difficult to sneak into now.

The Fat Lady's ripped canvas had been taken off the wall and replaced with the portrait of the knight, Sir Cadogan, and his fat grey pony. Nobody – with the exception of Leo - was very happy about this. Sir Cadogan spent half his time challenging people to duels, and the rest thinking up ridiculously complicated passwords, which he changed at least twice a day. Leo thought it was hilarious and just the type of crazy randomness he needed in his life.

What made him less happy was that Madam Hooch now oversaw all of the Gryffindor team's training practices. McGonagall had wanted Harry off the team entirely, owing to the fact that Sirius was supposedly after him. Harry had argued against this and so they managed to come to a compromise: he could stay on the team as long as Madam Hooch was around.

The weather worsened steadily as the first Quidditch match drew nearer. Undaunted, the Gryffindor team was training harder than ever under the eye of Madam Hooch. Then, at their final training session before Saturday's match, Oliver Wood gave his team some unwelcome news.

"We're not playing Slytherin!" he told them, looking very angry. "Flint's just been to see me. We're playing Hufflepuff instead."

"Why?" chorused the rest of the team.

"Flint's excuse is that their Seeker broke his arm falling down a flight of stairs this morning and that their reserve is still injured," said Wood, grinding his teeth furiously. "But it's obvious why they're doing it. Don't want to play in this weather. Think it'll damage their chances..."

Leo didn't hear the rest of Wood's words as he dashed off the pitch to the castle, not even bothering to change out of his muddy Quidditch robes. He arrived at the hospital wing in record time, skidding to a halt in front of the slightly ajar double doors and almost falling at the sudden stop. He pushed them open the rest of the way, looking around wildly before he spotted Draco's pale blonde head of hair laying on a bed and dashing over to him.

"Wood just told us," he panted. "What happened? Did you really fall down a flight of stairs?"

Draco's gaze darkened.

"In a manner of speaking," he replied bitterly. "Flint didn't want to play in these conditions, so he wanted me to fake an injury to get out of it. I refused to go along with it – if I want to be a professional Quidditch player, I have to be prepared to play in all kinds of weather, after all. A few hours later, I'm walking down from the library when I tripped and fell down the steps. I'd have thought it was my fault if I hadn't seen Zabini standing there -"

"He did this to you?" Leo asked abruptly, receiving a short nod in response.

His fists clenched until the knuckles were white and his hands were shaking. Draco opened his mouth to say something, but Madam Pomfrey appeared in that moment and shooed him out. Leo stalked from the hospital wing, hands still shaking angrily as she closed the doors behind him. He strode toward the wall, stopping next to a sconce and swinging his fist into the wall as hard as he could.

Immediately, pain lanced up his arm as he growled in both pain and rage. The fire in the sconce flared wildly, catching his attention and pulling it away from his now bloody knuckles. The fire dimmed somewhat as his rage subsided – even if his lust for revenge did not.

Over the next few days, misfortune seemed to befall Zabini at every turn. Food and goblets of drink would explode, his robes would spontaneously catch on fire, homework would disappear and books would fall apart when he touched them. Worst of all was when the entrance to the Slytherin common room – unable to take passwords due to being Confunded – locked him out all night with no one there to rescue him. Even then, Leo did not think it was enough. His friend had been attacked by Zabini – no amount of payback would ever be enough to satisfy him.

Leo's mood only worsened when he arrived at Defense Against the Dark Arts the day before their match against Hufflepuff. Despite knowing Remus would be out owing to the full moon, he was not expecting to see Snape standing there, preparing the lesson as though he was supposed to be there.

Leo sat down at the back of the class, well away from everyone else who – sensing that his already foul mood had grown worse – gave him a wide berth. Snape began talking about how Remus hadn't left any lesson plans when about ten minutes into the class, Harry burst in.

"Sorry I'm late, Professor Lupin. I —"

Snape looked up from Remus's desk.

"This lesson began ten minutes ago, Potter, so I think we'll make it ten points from Gryffindor. Sit down."

But Harry didn't move.

"Where's Professor Lupin?" he said.

"He says he is feeling too ill to teach today," said Snape with a twisted smile. "I believe I told you to sit down?"

But Harry stayed where he was.

"What's wrong with him?"

Snape's black eyes glittered. "Nothing life-threatening," he said, looking as though he wished it were. "Five more points from Gryffindor, and if I have to ask you to sit down again, it will be fifty."

Harry sank into a seat next to Leo, who merely spared him a glance before resuming his stormy expression. Snape looked around the class.

"As I was saying before Potter interrupted, Professor Lupin has not left any record of the topics you have covered so far —"

"Please, sir, we've done boggarts, Red Caps, kappas, and grindylows," said Hermione quickly, "and we're just about to start —"

"Be quiet," said Snape coldly. "I did not ask for information. I was merely commenting on Professor Lupin's lack of organization."

Leo snorted.

"Something amusing to you, Black?" Snape inquired, his eyes flashing menacingly as though daring him to answer.

"You mean besides the fact that he's the most anal person in the entire castle?" Leo replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "No, not much."

"Ten points from Gryffindor for your cheek, Black," Snape practically hissed. "Onto the lesson. Today we shall discuss —"

As he flipped to the back of the textbook, Leo yawned widely as though bored.

"— werewolves," said Snape.

Leo snapped to attention, his eyes narrowed angrily at the man. _You greasy-haired bastard._

"But, sir," said Hermione, seemingly unable to restrain herself, "we're not supposed to do werewolves yet, we're due to start hinkypunks —"

"Miss Granger," said Snape in a voice of deadly calm, "I was under the impression that I am teaching this lesson, not you. And I am telling you all to turn to page 394." He glanced around again. "_All of you! Now!_"

With many bitter sidelong looks and some sullen muttering, the class opened their books. Leo sat resolutely with his book firmly shut. Snape gave an idle flick of his wand and it flipped open to page 394.

"Which of you can tell me how we distinguish between the werewolf and the true wolf?" said Snape.

Everyone sat in motionless silence; everyone except Hermione, whose hand, as it so often did, had shot straight into the air.

"Anyone?" Snape said, ignoring Hermione. His twisted smile was back. "Are you telling me that Professor Lupin hasn't even taught you the basic distinction between —"

"We told you," said Parvati suddenly, "we haven't got as far as werewolves yet, we're still on-"

"_Silence_!" snarled Snape. "Well, well, well, I never thought I'd meet a third-year class who wouldn't even recognize a werewolf when they saw one. I shall make a point of informing Professor Dumbledore how very behind you all are..."

"Please, sir," said Hermione, whose hand was still in the air, "the werewolf differs from the true wolf in several small ways. The snout of the werewolf —"

"That is the second time you have spoken out of turn, Miss Granger," said Snape coolly. "Five more points from Gryffindor for being an insufferable know-it-all."

Hermione went very red, put down her hand, and stared at the floor with her eyes full of tears. It was a mark of how much the class loathed Snape that they were all glaring at him because every one of them had called Hermione a know-it-all at least once, and Ron, who told Hermione she was a know-it-all at least twice a week, said loudly, "You asked us a question and she knows the answer! Why ask if you don't want to be told?"

The class knew instantly he'd gone too far. Snape advanced on Ron slowly, and the room held its breath.

"Detention, Weasley," Snape said silkily, his face very close to Ron's. "And if I ever hear you criticize the way I teach a class again, you will be very sorry indeed."

* * *

"-and then the bloody bastard criticized how Moony teaches_ and then_ had the _gall_ to assign two rolls of parchment on how to recognize and _kill_ werewolves!" Leo yelled vehemently before firing off a Reductor Curse at a recently repaired armchair.

Sirius watched on in silence, knowing Leo just needed to get everything out of his system before he could even begin to try to approach him. It was the following morning after the lesson with Snape. The sun had yet to rise when Leo snuck down to the kitchens, nicked some sandwiches and a flagon of pumpkin juice, and brought them to the Shrieking Shack for Sirius to consume.

Sirius gave an idle wave of his wand, repairing the armchair for about the fifth time that morning. To his great surprise – and relief – Leo didn't destroy the armchair, instead sitting in it and placing his head in his hands, running them through his blonde hair in frustration.

"The git knows he can't tell the whole school about Remy without upsetting Dumbledore, so he's trying to get the students to figure it out and get him fired. Bloody coward," Leo grumbled angrily.

Sirius chewed thoughtfully on his ham and cheese sandwich.

"He's trying to humiliate Remus, right? Why not humiliate Snivellus instead?" Sirius suggested.

Leo glanced up at him, raising an eyebrow.

"What did you have in mind?"

"Ever notice that Snivellus looks just like a vampire?"

Leo grinned wickedly.

Five minutes later, feeling marginally better with a plan on how to deal with Snape, Leo made his way out of the Whomping Willow and ran down the lawn toward the Quidditch field, head bowed against the ferocious wind. He arrived at the locker room before the rest of his team, completely soaked through and more than delighted to change into his warm, dry, Quidditch robes.

Before long, the team arrived, changing into their scarlet robes and waiting for Wood's usual pre-match pep talk, which never came. He tried to speak several times, made an odd gulping noise, then shook his head hopelessly and beckoned them to follow him.

Leo – despite not playing at this time – followed them out onto the field with his Nimbus, knowing that something would inevitably go wrong and he'd be out there anyway. The wind was so strong that they staggered sideways as they walked out onto the field. If the crowd was cheering, they couldn't hear it over the fresh rolls of thunder. Leo shook the rain from his eyes.

The Hufflepuffs were approaching from the opposite side of the field, wearing canary-yellow robes. The Captains walked up to each other and shook hands; Diggory smiled at Wood but Wood now looked as though he had lockjaw and merely nodded. Leo saw Madam Hooch's mouth form the words, "Mount Your brooms." Madam Hooch put her whistle to her lips and gave it a blast that sounded shrill and distant — they were off.

As the match progressed, Leo was glad he wasn't flying through the freezing rain and was allowed to keep his feet firmly on the ground. About five minutes in, he pointed his wand upward, mumbled a few words, and a semi-transparent bluish umbrella appeared above him, shielding him from the rain. _But not the wind._ He gritted his teeth as a particularly strong gust almost knocked him over.

With the first flash of lightning came the sound of Madam Hooch's whistle; Leo could just see the outline of Wood through the thick rain, gesturing Harry to the ground. The whole team splashed down into the mud, rushing toward Leo who expanded his umbrella to accommodate them.

Harry took off his glasses and wiped them hurriedly on his robes.

"What's the score?"

"We're fifty points up," said Wood, "but unless we get the Snitch soon, we'll be playing into the night."

"I've got no chance with these on," Harry said exasperatedly, waving his glasses.

Leo snatched the glasses from his hands, tapping them with his wand and murmuring, "_Impervius_. There, now they'll repel water."

"How -?" Harry began as Leo handed his glasses back.

"I hate water," Leo scowled.

Wood didn't seem to care what Leo's reasons for knowing the spell were.

"Brilliant!" he said hoarsely, clapping him on the shoulder. "Okay, team, let's go for it!"

They took to the skies with renewed determination, Leo watching them with a self-satisfied smile on his face. He watched Harry closely as he flew around the field, looking wildly for the Snitch. He was so focused on his cousin that he barely heard Wood yell.

"Harry!" came his anguished yell from the Gryffindor goal posts. "Harry, behind you!"

Leo turned his head, eyes narrowing as he spotted Cedric Diggory pelting up the field a tiny speck of gold was shimmering in the rain-filled air between him and Harry. Harry sped toward it at once. That was when everything went wrong.

An eerie silence was fell across the stadium. The wind, though as strong as ever, forgot to roar. It was as though someone had turned off the sound, as though Leo had gone suddenly deaf. _What in the -?_ He looked around wildly as a wave of cold swept over him, his face paling as at least a hundred dementors swarmed the field, their hooded faces staring up at Harry.

Once more, screams of pain and high, echoing laughter filled his ears. He pressed his hands to his ears, trying to shut out the noise as he fell to his knees, screaming. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw rapid movement, a figure was falling from the sky. It was Harry.

_"Weo pwotect Hawy."_

The vow echoed in his head over and over again, drowning out the cacophony of screams and laughter as he rose unsteadily to his feet and mounted his broom. He kicked off, swerving slightly against the wind as he flattened himself on his broom and pelted toward Harry, pushing away the cold fog that tried to shroud his mind.

About thirty feet from the ground, Leo's hands released from his broom, grabbing Harry by his robes as he tried to haul him onto his broom. The sudden added weight combined with the velocity with which Harry was falling sent the broom into a tailspin dive toward the ground. Leo tried to regain control of his broom but to no avail. They were going to crash. He hugged Harry closer to him.

"Hold on, Harry," he mumbled.

Fifteen feet from the ground, he jumped, turning and angling his body so that he would land on the muddy ground with Harry on top of him. The air rushed from his lungs as his body impacted the ground, his broom splintering against the ground mere feet away from him. As darkness swarmed around him, a bright light shined above him in the shape of a bird, chasing the dementors away. Everything then went black.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Probably should've phrased it a bit better in the last chapter, but Leo only has no homework in Defense. Remy can't really control what the other teachers do, now can he?**


	8. Chapter 8: Leo's Revenge

**Chapter 8: Leo's Revenge**

_Dumbledore pulled me aside today and told me what I was. I'm an Elementalist – a witch or wizard with a particular affinity for elemental magic. My affinity just so happens to be ice. I was somewhat bothered by this at first, but I just decided to embrace and accept it as I did with my other... 'gift'. Not like I can give it back anyhow._

* * *

Leo awoke the next morning with a small groan, holding up an arm to shield his eyes as the sun streamed down upon him. He turned his head at the sound of his name, breathing out a sigh of relief to see Harry sitting up in a bed next to his, looking just as relieved to see him awake. Leo rubbed his eyes slightly as he gingerly sat up, hissing with pain as he did so.

"What happened?" Leo questioned. "Last thing I remember... we fell and the dementors got chased away."

"Hufflepuff won the match and, well," Harry grimaced, holding up a dozen bits of splintered wood and twigs. "Our brooms didn't make it."

"Oh," Leo frowned. "That's...unfortunate."

"Yeah...," Harry nodded slowly, biting his lip anxiously. "They told me what you did. Leo, you risked -"

"I'd do it again in a heartbeat, Harry," Leo cut across him fiercely. "If you try to tell me I shouldn't have or that you're not worth it, I'll throw you into the Black Lake."

Harry snorted despite himself before looking curious.

"How'd you do it?" he questioned. "Why didn't the dementors affect you like they did last time?"

Leo frowned, tilting his head to the side in thought. He didn't really have an answer for that. Thankfully, he was saved from having to come up with one by the appearance of Madam Pomfrey, who practically shrieked at the sight of Leo sitting up and forced him to lay back down and rest some more. He rolled his eyes but didn't argue.

Over the course of the weekend, the two had many visitors. Hagrid brought them both some odd-looking flowers and the Weasley twins brought Leo a variety of different chocolate dishes from the kitchens and gave Harry a mountain of treacle tart. Pomfrey almost had a heart attack.

Ron and Hermione were there constantly, usually at Harry's bedside while Draco took up residence at Leo's. The Trio was surprised to see a book in front of Leo and to actually see him _reading_ it and writing things down on a piece of parchment. When asked what he was doing, the boy's eyes merely glimmered with mischief as he informed the group that he was doing an assignment for Snape. They thought he was joking until Monday morning rolled around.

Everyone crowded around the entrance hall before breakfast to see an enlarged piece of parchment that read at the top:

**How to Spot A Vampire: The Severus Snape Method**

Beneath it was a list of bullet points on what a vampire was and how it oddly all pointed toward Snape being one. There were howls of laughter ringing and echoing around the hall until Snape appeared, his face a mask of rage as he waved his wand and vanished it. It was back following the end of breakfast and again after lunch once Snape tried to vanish it again.

"How many copies do you have?" Draco inquired before they split up.

"Enough to keep this going the entire year," Leo winked before running after the Trio on the way to Defense.

"If Snape's teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts again, I'm skiving off," Ron was saying. "Check who's in there, Hermione."

Hermione peered around the classroom door.

"It's okay!"

Leo sagged with relief. He didn't think he'd be able to stop himself from cursing Snape if he had to put up with more snide comments about Moony and how he was secretly a werewolf. _If anyone needs to get mauled by a werewolf, it's him._ He thought mutinously as the class took their seats and burst at once into an explosion of complaints about Snape's behavior while Remus had been ill.

"It's not fair, he was only filling in, why should he give us homework?"

"We don't know anything about werewolves —"

"— two rolls of parchment!"

"Did you tell Professor Snape we haven't covered them yet?" Remus asked, frowning slightly.

"Well, gee, why didn't we think of that?" Leo snorted in amusement. "Of course we did! He wouldn't listen -"

"—_ two rolls of parchment!_"

Remus smiled at the look of indignation on every face.

"Don't worry. I'll speak to Professor Snape. You don't have to do the essay."

"Oh no," said Hermione, looking very disappointed. "I've already finished it!"

Leo eyed her worriedly. He was well-aware that Hermione Granger was, without a doubt, the brightest witch of her age. If anyone could figure out Remus was a werewolf, it would be her. He didn't think she'd run about spreading it across the school, but he wasn't overly fond of the idea of someone who wasn't a staff member, himself, or an old friend knowing exactly what Moony was.

Despite this, Leo managed to set aside his concerns for the moment in order to enjoy the lesson. Remus had brought along a glass box containing a hinkypunk, a little one-legged creature who looked as though he were made of wisps of smoke, rather frail and harmless looking. Leo was starting to wonder where Remus was getting these creatures from and if he would be able to hook a godson up.

"Lures travelers into bogs," said Remus as everyone but Leo took notes. "You notice the lantern dangling from his hand? Hops ahead — people follow the light — then —"

The hinkypunk made a horrible squelching noise against the glass.

"Well, that sounds pleasant," Leo remarked in a mild tone, receiving a few chuckles.

When the bell rang, everyone gathered up their things and headed for the door, Remus called him and Harry back.

"If this is about the vampire essay, I can't tell you who did it – only that they're a mad genius," Leo informed the man honestly.

"I'm sure they are, Leo," Remus gave a small smile as he covered up the hinkypunk's glass. "But that's not what I wanted to talk to you about."

He turned back to his desk and began to pile books into his briefcase.

"I heard about the match, and I'm sorry about your broomsticks. Is there any chance of fixing them?"

"No," said Harry. "The tree smashed it to bits."

"The ground wasn't very gentle either," Leo added blithely.

Remus sighed.

"They planted the Whomping Willow the same year that I arrived at Hogwarts. People used to play a game, trying to get near enough to touch the trunk. In the end, a boy called Davey Gudgeon nearly lost an eye, and we were forbidden to go near it. No broomstick would have a chance."

"Did you hear about the dementors too?" said Harry with difficulty.

Leo sat down on the edge of a desk, figuring this talk would take some time if Harry insisted on bringing up every aspect of the Quidditch match. _Dunno why he's harping on about it. There's nothing we can do about it._

"Yes, I did. I don't think any of us have seen Professor Dumbledore that angry. They have been growing restless for some time... furious at his refusal to let them inside the grounds... I suppose they were the reason you fell?" Remus inquired.

"Yes," said Harry. "_Why_? Why do they affect me like that? Am I just —?"

"It has nothing to do with weakness," said Remus sharply, as though he had read Harry's mind. "The dementors affect you and Leo worse than the others because there are horrors in your pasts that the others don't have."

"But... but Leo was fine," Harry mumbled. "The dementors didn't affect him this time."

Remus turned his head sharply to the blonde, raising an eyebrow in curiosity as Leo fidgeted nervously before reaching a decision.

"They did affect me – I almost had another panic attack and passed out but..." he frowned. "I saw you, Harry. I saw you falling and everything else just sort of... faded away. I couldn't think about what I was hearing, I had to get to you."

"Your determination to save a loved one overcame your fear of the dementors," Remus surmised, receiving a hesitant nod from the blonde in return. "I see..."

A ray of wintry sunlight fell across the classroom, illuminating Remy's gray hairs and the lines on his young face.

"Dementors are among the foulest creatures that walk this earth. They infest the darkest, filthiest places, they glory in decay and despair, they drain peace, hope, and happiness out of the air around them. Even Muggles feel their presence, though they can't see them. Get too near a dementor and every good feeling, every happy memory will be sucked out of you. If it can, the dementor will feed on you long enough to reduce you to something like itself — soul-less and evil. You'll be left with nothing but the worst experiences of your life. And the worst that happened to you and Leo, Harry, is enough to make anyone fall off their broom. You have nothing to feel ashamed of."

"When they get near me —" Harry stared at Remus' desk. "I can hear Voldemort murdering my mum and my aunt." He glanced at Leo. "Can you -?"

"I hear them," Leo replied in a short tone, making it clear he didn't want to discuss it. "I hear... well, imagine every bad thing that's ever happened to you and then imagine it all happening at once. It's awful."

Remus looked sympathetic and seemed as though he was about to reach an arm out to him before he recalled that they were not alone. There was a moment's silence, then —

"Why did they have to come to the match?" said Harry bitterly.

"They're getting hungry," said Remus coolly, shutting his briefcase with a snap. "Dumbledore won't let them into the school, so their supply of human prey has dried up... I don't think they could resist the large crowd around the Quidditch field. All that excitement... emotions running high... it was their idea of a feast."

"The more I hear about the dementors, the more I'm reminded vividly of Snape," Leo remarked. "Should've written an essay comparing him to a dementor instead – I mean... never mind. I said nothing."

Harry gave a snort of laughter while Remus tried and failed to hide a smile of his own.

"Azkaban must be terrible," Harry muttered, sobering up.

Leo had to stop himself from nodding alongside Remus, recalling that he wasn't supposed to know what Azkaban was like.

"The fortress is set on a tiny island, way out to sea, but they don't need walls and water to keep the prisoners in, not when they're all trapped inside their own heads, incapable of a single cheery thought. Most of them go mad within weeks."

"But Sirius Black escaped from them," Harry said slowly. "He got away..."

Remus' briefcase slipped from the desk; he had to stoop quickly to catch it. _Smooth, Remy. _Remus shot a look at him, seeming to read his mind.

"Yes," he said, straightening up, "Black must have found a way to fight them. I wouldn't have believed it possible... dementors are supposed to drain a wizard of his powers if he is left with them too long..."

"_You_ made that dementor on the train back off," said Harry suddenly.

"There are — certain defenses one can use," said Remus. "But there was only one dementor on the train. The more there are, the more difficult it becomes to resist."

"What defenses?" said Harry at once. "Can you teach me?"

_"Us,_" Leo corrected, hopping off the desk. "Can you teach _us_?"

"I don't pretend to be an expert at fighting dementors, quite the contrary..."

"Oh, pish-posh, M-Mr. Lupin," Leo snorted, catching himself before he slipped up. "You're brilliant and you know it."

"I appreciate the flattery, Leo, but... Well... all right. I'll try and help. But it'll have to wait until next term, I'm afraid. I have a lot to do before the holidays. I chose a very inconvenient time to fall ill."

Leo was practically skipping around the halls in the days following Remus' promise to teach them how to fight dementors. Snape had given up taking down the parchment after a week of it constantly reappearing in the Entrance Hall. In order to make up for this, he started docking points from Gryffindor – specifically Leo – and had tried assigning detention to the boy. Leo had merely raised an eyebrow and asked if Snape really wanted to spend hours of one-on-one time with him. Snape seemed to pale somewhat at the thought before he took away more points and flounced away.

Sirius found all this very amusing. His original idea had been to use some sort of spell or potion to make Snape look like a vampire. Leo's plan was much more long-lasting and continued to provide humor to those who walked by it. Leo informed him that he was planning on doing a dementor essay and posting it up after Christmas break. Sirius sobered up at this, remarking that he still had to get Leo and Harry presents. The blonde shook his head, declining the offer, but Siri was insistent.

Ravenclaw flattened Hufflepuff in their Quidditch match at the end of November, meaning Gryffindor wasn't out of the running after all, although they could not afford to lose another match. Wood became repossessed of his manic energy and worked his team as hard as ever in the chilly haze of rain that persisted into December. Leo saw no hint of a dementor within the grounds. Dumbledore's anger seemed to be keeping them at their stations at the entrances.

Two weeks before the end of the term, the sky lightened suddenly to a dazzling, opaline white and the muddy grounds were revealed one morning covered in glittering frost. Inside the castle, there was a buzz of Christmas in the air. Professor Flitwick, the Charms teacher, had already decorated his classroom with shimmering lights that turned out to be real, fluttering fairies that had to be removed after Leo got into an argument with them over which one of them was better looking.

To everyone's delight except Leo's and Harry's, there was to be another Hogsmeade trip on the very last weekend of the term. Fred and George pulled him aside that day, informing Leo that he could tell Harry about the Map so he could go to Hogsmeade. He didn't want to, but he couldn't say so. Three of those Marauders were his family and one was his godfather. The Map was his birthright just as much as James' Invisibility Cloak was Harry's. He decided to compromise.

On the Saturday morning of the Hogsmeade trip after bidding Ron and Hermione farewell, Leo grabbed his cousin by the arm and led him up to the third floor. He stopped in front of the statue of the one-eyed witch and turned to look at Harry, who was looking at him in a bewildered sort of way.

"Harry," Leo began. "Do you still want to go to Hogsmeade?"

"Well, yeah, of course, but -"

Leo wasn't paying attention. He flicked his wand into his hand and tapped the statue, saying, "_Dissendium_."

At once, the statue's hump opened wide enough to admit a fairly thin person. Harry's eyes were wide in surprise as he looked from the hump to Leo and back again.

"If you take this passage, you'll wind up in Honeydukes' cellar," Leo informed him, returning his wand to its holster. "It'll close behind you once you're in. When you head back, just tap the door with your wand and it'll open up. Good luck."

He patted Harry on his shoulder before giving a wink and running off. He made his way out of the castle and onto the grounds where Padfoot sat waiting for him, wagging his tail wildly. Leo scooped snow off the ground and lobbed it high into the air for Padfoot to try to catch. About the third time they did this, Leo pelted him with a snowball while he was in the air. Padfoot's grey eyes twinkled mischievously before he barked, turned around, and began kicking snow and, eventually, mud at him.

With a smirk, Leo used the same trick he had on Remus and conjured a flaming shield in front of him. Padfoot whined in displeasure, making it quite clear that he didn't think it was fair. The whine turned into a gleeful bark as, once more, Leo found himself suspended in the air by his ankle with an undignified yelp. He looked around wildly before spotting Remus striding towards the two, an amused smile on his face as he held his wand aloft.

"All the teachers and most of the students are in Hogsmeade, so I figured I'd join in," Remus shrugged at Leo's confused expression. "Only thing we really have to worry about is Harry looking for you -"

"He won't, he's in Hogsmeade," Leo stated in a dismissive tone as Padfoot slobbered all over his face. "Showed him the passage to Honeydukes – will you stop doing that!"

Padfoot gave a satisfied bark, having successfully annoyed his nephew. Leo glared at him crossly while Moony laughed. He stopped laughing when the blonde managed to fire a Knockback Jinx at his feet that sent him face-first into the snow. Leo landed on his back a moment later.

From there, the two engaged in a rigorous snowball fight – this time with no cheating on Leo's part – with Padfoot jumping between the two, either trying to catch snowballs in the air or kicking snow and mud at them. At one point Remus and Leo decided to team up and fire a storm of snowballs at Padfoot, sending him running away and yelping. The two high-fived each other, laughing while Padfoot glared at them mutinously.


	9. Chapter 9: Taking One For the Team

**Chapter 9: Taking One For the Team**

_Saw Rosier picking on that Ravenclaw girl Pandora again. Froze his feet to the floor and none of the teachers could thaw him out. I eventually let him go after Remy stared at me disapprovingly all through dinner. Git._

* * *

Leo returned to his dorm room later that evening just before everyone returned for dinner. He was muddier and wetter than he had ever been – which was a feat in and of itself given all the Quidditch practices he'd been through – but also very happy and more relaxed than he had been since Zabini's attack on Draco. He decided he'd shower and change first before he snuck down to the kitchens for some food. When he exited the showers, he was surprised to find Harry sitting on his bed with a photo album in his hands.

Leo opened his mouth to say something but Harry cut him off.

"Did you know?"

"Probably," Leo shrugged before frowning. "What're we talking about?"

"Did you know," Harry began again, rising to his feet, "that Sirius Black was friends with my parents? That he betrayed them to Voldemort? That he was my godfather?"

Leo raised his eyebrows. This conversation wouldn't end well no matter what he said.

"In order: yes, no, and I never bothered to ask," Leo replied, leaning against the wall.

"Why didn't you tell me that Sirius Black knew my parents?!" Harry yelled.

Leo flicked out his wand, pointing it at the doors to the dorm room and mumbling "_Colloportus_," locking it before casting a Silencing Charm for good measure.

"I didn't think I had to," Leo responded, striding over to sit on his own bed. "You knew he was my dad's twin. You knew my dad and yours went to school together. You knew they hung out. Not that big a leap to assume he knew Sirius Black as well." He paused. "Where did you hear all this anyway?"

"Three Broomsticks," Harry replied, the anger draining out of him as he sat back down on his bed. "The teachers sat next to us – I hid under the table – and they talked with Fudge about Black." He glanced up at Leo nervously. "They said he might be after you too. Not to kill you or anything but -"

"To turn me onto his side?" Leo finished shrewdly as Harry nodded in assent. "Figures. Bet old Fudgems came up with that didn't he?"

"Yeah... he also said you visited Black in Azkaban."

"Yeah, summer after our first year," Leo laid back in his bed. "I'd heard a lot about him, and I was curious. Dumbledore set it up as part of an agreement. I don't take you from Privet Drive before our birthday and I get to see Sirius. Simple as that."

Harry was quiet for a moment, staring at the album in his hands. Leo's gaze was focused upward to the canopy of his four-poster. He tilted his head to the side, suddenly wishing he knew the charm that would enchant it to look like the night sky. It would be a relaxing change from the blank canvas that stared back at him. The two were quiet for some time before Harry was the first to break the silence.

"What was he like?" Harry mumbled. "What was he like when you met him in Azkaban?"

"He was... nice - bit cheerful and excited to have a visitor," Leo smiled to himself. "I had my first panic attack halfway through our visit and he talked me down – gave me some breathing exercises and everything."

"So, what, you're saying he's not the mass-murdering lunatic everyone says he is?" Harry questioned angrily.

"I'm saying that there are two sides to every story, and you've only ever heard one, Harry," Leo answered simply.

Harry sat there in stony silence as Leo rolled off his bed, walked over to him, and clapped him heartily on the shoulder. He removed the charms on the door before exiting the room and making his way to the packed common room. Ron and Hermione ran up to him at once, asking how Harry was. Leo merely shrugged in response before heading out the portrait hole and toward the kitchen.

The next morning found Leo wandering down the grounds toward Hagrid's. Draco and the twins had left for home and Harry was moody and avoiding him. Left with no other option, Leo decided to visit his favorite gamekeeper and see what sort of terrifying monsters Hagrid would have for them when class resumed.

He was surprised to see Knight silently watching him from the shadows of the Forbidden Forest. Leo gave a small wave, receiving a low sort of howl from the wolf in response before he turned around and trotted back through the trees. The boy watched him for a moment before shaking his head, walking up to Hagrid's door, and knocking on it.

He heard a stifled sniffle before there was a sound of heavy footsteps, then the door creaked open. Hagrid stood there with his eyes red and swollen, tears splashing down the front of his leather vest. Leo raised an apprehensive eyebrow.

"Er... are you alright, Hagrid?" Leo questioned.

Hagrid sniffed again before standing aside so Leo could walk in. He took a seat next to the fire as Hagrid busied himself making tea. It was only after he had handed Leo a steaming hot cup that he finally spoke.

"Yeh heard abou' Zabini?" Hagrid asked, taking a seat across from Leo.

"I try not to, to be perfectly honest," Leo responded, an edge of irritation in his voice. "I have the urge to light something on fire any time I do..."

Hagrid looked somber as he passed an official-looking letter over to Leo, who took it and read:

_Dear Mr. Hagrid,_

_Further to our inquiry into the attack by a wolf on a student in your class, we have accepted the assurances of Professor Dumbledore that you bear no responsibility for the regrettable incident._

_However, we must register our concern about the wolf in question. We have decided to uphold the official complaint of Mrs. Arachne Zabini, and this matter will, therefore, be taken to the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures. The hearing will take place on April 20th, and we ask you to present yourself and your wolf -_

Leo stopped reading, staring at the paper for a moment before he began roaring with laughter. Hagrid seemed taken aback by this response. It took a while for Leo to compose himself enough to speak, though he still wore a faintly amused smile.

"They act like Knight's some sort of Magical Creature or pet you can just order around," he snorted. "Friendly though he may be – he's still a wild animal. He's not just going to sit there, let you put him on a leash, and take him to London. That's just mental."

"Bu-Bu', if I don', he-he'll be – they'll," Hagrid cut off, sobbing into his hands.

Leo reached over to pat his shoulder somewhat awkwardly.

"They'll what? Come over and execute him?" Leo rolled his eyes. "I'd like to see them try. Knight knows that forest better than anyone. They could search it for years and never find him. He'll be safe, Hagrid. Trust me."

Hagrid looked up and gave an appreciative – if a bit watery – smile. Leo patted him on the arm again and the talk turned to upcoming lessons. The boy told Hagrid that he should bring Fluffy – he missed him something fierce – or have Charlie bring Norberta over for a visit. Hagrid looked about ready to agree with him but recalled both of those creatures had a tendency to try to eat people. Leo sighed with disappointment.

After his visit with Hagrid, he paid a visit to Sirius and filled him in on his and Harry's conversation. Sirius looked happy and excited that Harry finally knew he was his godfather. His mood dropped faster than a frozen Bludger when Leo reminded him that Harry still believed that he was a nutjob who was responsible for his parents' deaths. He wasn't much one for conversation after that.

Leo felt bad after that but knew it was for the best. He worried that if Sirius got too excited or too hopeful, he'd do something stupid like break into the castle to see Harry. He told his uncle as much, receiving a small grumble of agreement before he turned into Padfoot and ran upstairs to mope for a while.

Remus wasn't much better company. With the full moon drawing close, Remy became tired and somewhat withdrawn. Twice during their conversation, he fell asleep. On the third time, Leo left the room and headed for the Great Hall to see if he could assist with decorating. It's not like he had anything better to do with his time, after all. McGonagall and Flitwick were only too happy to let him assist, and even awarded him house points for his initiative.

By the time Christmas came around, thick streamers of holly and mistletoe were strung along the corridors, mysterious lights shone from inside every suit of armor, and the Great Hall was filled with its usual twelve Christmas trees, glittering with golden stars. Leo charmed the suits of armor to sing various Christmas carols any time someone passed them by, trying to make the castle feel as festive as possible.

On Christmas morning, Ron lobbed a pillow at both him and Harry to awaken them. Leo glared at him, grumbling as he sat up and stared at the small pile of presents at the foot of his bed. He opened them to find he got a blue-grey sweater from Mrs. Weasley with the usual assortment of homemade fudge. He'd received various joke items from Fred and George and a book on dementors from Draco. He grinned, knowing it would come in handy when he eventually wrote that essay on Snape. With a majority of the presents gone, he saw a long, thin package lying on the floor.

"What's that?" said Ron, looking over, a freshly unwrapped pair of maroon socks in his hand.

"Dunno..." Harry's voice replied.

Leo swiveled his head over, biting back a groan and the urge to face-palm as he saw Harry had an eerily similar package to his own. _Bloody hell, Sirius... _He sighed as Harry ripped his parcel open and gasped as a magnificent, gleaming broomstick rolled out onto his bedspread. Ron dropped his socks and jumped off his bed for a closer look.

"I don't believe it," he said hoarsely.

"You and me both," Leo grumbled so low that they couldn't hear him.

It was a Firebolt. Leo opened his own present to see he had received the same. Its handle glittered as he picked it up. He could feel it vibrating and let go; it hung in midair, unsupported, at exactly the right height for him to mount it. His eyes moved from the golden registration number at the top of the handle, right down to the perfectly smooth, streamlined birch twigs that made up the tail.

"Bloody hell, you got one too?" Ron gasped, looking over at him.

"It would appear so," Leo replied, looking over his broom with vague interest.

"Did you get a card either?" Harry questioned.

Leo gave a small shake of his head.

"Blimey, who'd spend that much on you two?"

"Well," said Harry, "I'm betting it wasn't the Dursleys."

"Doubtful," Leo snorted, walking over and placing his Firebolt next to Harry's. "Even if they did care about us, there's no way they have this kind of money."

"I bet it was Dumbledore," said Ron, now walking around and around the Firebolts. "He sent you the Invisibility Cloak anonymously..."

"That was my dad's, though," said Harry. "Dumbledore was just passing it on to me. He wouldn't spend hundreds of Galleons on me. He can't go giving students stuff like this —"

"I still wonder why Dumbledore had it," Leo mused. "Why would he be interested in an old Invisibility Cloak?"

"I can't believe this," Harry muttered, running a hand along the Firebolt, not really hearing what Leo was saying. "_Who_—?"

"I know," said Ron, suddenly. "I know who it could've been — Lupin!"

"M-Mr. Lupin doesn't exactly look like he's got two Firebolts worth of gold lying about, Ronald," Leo rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, but he likes you two," said Ron. "And he was away when your Nimbuses got smashed, and he might've heard about it and decided to visit Diagon Alley and get this for you lot —"

"What d'you mean, he was away?" said Harry. "He was ill when I was playing in that match."

"Well, he wasn't in the hospital wing," said Ron. "I was there, cleaning out the bedpans on that detention from Snape, remember?"

Leo decided to trip and fall on his face at that moment, eliciting laughs from the boys and successfully diverting the conversation from Remus. _You owe me, Remy._ Leo groused as he sat up and rubbed his nose.

"What're you two laughing about?"

Hermione had just come in, wearing her dressing gown and carrying Crookshanks, who was looking very grumpy, with a string of tinsel tied around his neck. Leo gave Crookshanks a warning look. _Don't even think about it._ Crookshanks gave a small 'humph!' and turned his head away, his tail twitching irritably.

"Don't bring him in here!" said Ron, hurriedly snatching Scabbers from the depths of his bed and stowing him in his pajama pocket.

Leo followed the movement carefully before looking away as though disinterested. Hermione dropped Crookshanks onto Seamus's empty bed and stared, open-mouthed, at the Firebolts.

"Who sent you that?"

"No idea," said Harry. "There wasn't a card or anything with it."

"Yep, it's a mystery all right," Leo agreed.

Hermione did not appear either excited or intrigued by the news. On the contrary, her face fell, and she bit her lip.

"What's the matter with you?" said Ron.

"I don't know," said Hermione slowly, "but it's a bit odd, isn't it? I mean, this is supposed to be quite a good broom, isn't it?"

"Greatest broom in the world, at the moment," Leo shrugged.

"So it must've been really expensive..."

"Pretty sure it would empty a big chunk of my bank account buying two of them..." Leo trailed off, now feeling the inescapable urge to strangle Sirius next time he saw him.

"Well... who'd send Harry and Leo something as expensive as that and not even tell them they'd sent it?" said Hermione.

"Secret admirers?" Leo suggested.

"Who cares?" said Ron impatiently. "Listen, Harry, can I have a go on it? Can I?"

"I don't think anyone should ride those brooms just yet!" said Hermione shrilly.

Leo covered his ears at the loud noise as Harry and Ron looked at her.

"What d'you think they're going to do with them — sweep the floor?" said Ron, eliciting a snort of laughter from Leo.

But before Hermione could answer, Crookshanks sprang from Seamus's bed, right at Ron's chest. Leo face-palmed.

"GET — HIM — OUT — OF — HERE!" Ron bellowed as Crookshanks's claws ripped his pajamas and Scabbers attempted a wild escape over his shoulder. Ron seized Scabbers by the tail and aimed a misjudged kick at Crookshanks that hit the trunk at the end of Harry's bed, knocking it over and causing Ron to hop up and down, howling with pain.

Crookshanks's fur suddenly stood on end. A shrill, tinny, whistling was filling the room. The Pocket Sneakoscope had become dislodged from Vernon's old socks and was whirling and gleaming on the floor. _Pettigrew must be setting it off. _Leo surmised, staring intriguingly at the device that Harry was now picking up.

"I forgot about that!" Harry exclaimed. "I never wear those socks if I can help it..."

"Can I have it, Harry?" Leo asked suddenly. "Been meaning to replace the one Paddy ate."

"Oh, er, sure," Harry replied, handing it over to his cousin as Ron started yelling again.

"You'd better take that cat out of here, Hermione," said Ron furiously, sitting on Harry's bed nursing his toe. "Can't you shut that thing up?" he added to Leo as Hermione strode out of the room, Crookshanks' yellow eyes still fixed maliciously on Ron.

The blonde rolled his eyes before placing a Silencing Charm on the Sneakoscope, which continued to whirl and – presumably – whistle noiselessly in his palm before he stuffed it into the pocket of his bathrobe.

All that could be heard now were Ron's stifled moans of pain and rage. Scabbers was huddled in Ron's hands. It had been a while since Leo had seen him out of Ron's pocket, and he was pleasantly surprised to see that Scabbers, once so fat, was now very skinny; patches of fur seemed to have fallen out too._ Getting nervous now are we, Pettigrew?_ Leo suppressed a gleeful smile.

"He's not looking too good, is he?" Harry said.

"It's stress!" said Ron. "He'd be fine if that big stupid furball left him alone!"

Leo severely doubted Crookshanks was the big issue. Knowing that someone like Sirius Black was after you and would stop at nothing to get revenge was a lot more terrifying and nerve-wracking than a giant orange puffball trying to eat you.

Christmas spirit was definitely thin on the ground in the Gryffindor common room that morning. Hermione had shut Crookshanks in her dormitory, but was furious with Ron for trying to kick him; Ron was still fuming about Crookshanks's fresh attempt to eat Scabbers. Leo lounged in his favorite armchair, creating fiery shapes with his wand. Ron watched in idle fascination until he made a cat chasing a rat around and then eating it. At that point, Ron scowled and refused to even look at Leo for the remainder of the evening.

At lunchtime they went down to the Great Hall, to find that the House tables had been moved against the walls again and that a single table, set for thirteen, stood in the middle of the room. Dumbledore, McGonagall, Snape, Sprout, and Flitwick were there, along with Filch, the caretaker, who had taken off his usual brown coat and was wearing a very old and rather moldy-looking tailcoat. There were only three other students, two extremely nervous-looking first years and a sullen-faced Slytherin fifth year.

"Merry Christmas!" said Dumbledore as the four approached the table. "As there are so few of us, it seemed foolish to use the House tables... Sit down, sit down!"

They sat side by side at the end of the table.

"Crackers!" said Dumbledore enthusiastically, offering the end of a large silver noisemaker to Snape, who took it reluctantly and tugged. With a bang like a gunshot, the cracker flew apart to reveal a large, pointed witches hat topped with a stuffed vulture.

Leo roared with laughter and Snape turned toward him, his eyes flashing maliciously as though wishing nothing but death upon the boy. Snape then pushed the hat toward Dumbledore, who swapped it for his wizard's hat at once.

"Dig in!" he advised the table, beaming around.

As Leo was helping himself to a hearty roast, the doors of the Great Hall opened again. It was Trelawney, gliding toward them as though on wheels. She had put on a green sequined dress in honor of the occasion, making her look more than ever like a glittering, over-sized dragonfly. Leo scowled upon seeing her.

"Sybill, this is a pleasant surprise!" said Dumbledore, standing up.

"I have been crystal gazing, Headmaster," said Trelawney in her mistiest, most faraway voice, "and to my astonishment, I saw myself abandoning my solitary luncheon and coming to join you. Who am I to refuse the promptings of fate? I at once hastened from my tower, and I do beg you to forgive my lateness..."

"Certainly, certainly," said Dumbledore, his eyes twinkling. "Let me draw you up a chair —"

Trelawney suddenly gave an audible gasp before Dumbledore could rise from his chair.

"There are thirteen sat at this table! Nothing could be more unlucky! When thirteen dine together, the first to rise will be the first to die -"

Leo rolled his eyes before jumping from his seat, spinning around a few times, and sitting back down. Trelawney looked aghast as the boy began starting in on his potatoes. McGonagall looked as though she was fighting the urge to smile.

"My - my dear boy," Trelawney began.

"Yes, yes, doom, despair, and death," Leo replied flippantly. "All wonderful conversation topics for Christmas lunch. Would you care for some turkey?"

Trelawney gave him an affronted look, not quite as used to his mannerisms as everyone else at the table was. She then hesitantly sat in the chair Dumbledore conjured between Snape and McGonagall. McGonagall poked a large spoon into the nearest tureen.

"Tripe, Sybill?"

Trelawney ignored her. She looked around once more and said, "But where is dear Professor Lupin?"

"I'm afraid the poor fellow is ill again," said Dumbledore, indicating that everybody should start serving themselves. "Most unfortunate that it should happen on Christmas Day."

Leo made a mental note to ask the house-elves to send Remus up some food later. He didn't want him to miss the feast, after all. He had already told Kreacher to make Sirius whatever he wanted for Christmas, figuring he wouldn't have much chance to visit during such a busy holiday.

"But surely you already knew that, Sybill?" said McGonagall, her eyebrows raised.

Trelawney gave McGonagall a very cold look. Leo looked at Minnie with renewed reverence, wondering if he could ever get Trelawney to look at him that way.

"Certainly I knew, Minerva," she said quietly. "But one does not parade the fact that one is All-Knowing. I frequently act as though I am not possessed of the Inner Eye, so as not to make others nervous."

"That explains a great deal," said McGonagall tartly, gaining a choked laugh from Leo that he tried to disguise as a cough.

Trelawney's voice suddenly became a good deal less misty.

"If you must know, Minerva, I have seen that poor Professor Lupin will not be with us for very long. He seems aware, himself, that his time is short. He positively fled when I offered to crystal gaze for him —"

"Can't possibly imagine why," Leo remarked dryly, still not quite having forgiven her for her earlier prediction.

"I doubt," said Dumbledore, in a cheerful but slightly raised voice, which put an end to McGonagall and Leo's attempts to tag team Trelawney, "that Professor Lupin is in any immediate danger. Severus, you've made the potion for him again?"

"Yes, Headmaster," said Snape.

"Good," said Dumbledore. "Then he should be up and about in no time... Derek, have you had any of the chipolatas? They're excellent."

The first-year boy went furiously red on being addressed directly by Dumbledore and took the platter of sausages with trembling hands.

Trelawney behaved almost normally until the very end of Christmas dinner, two hours later. Full to bursting with Christmas dinner and still wearing their cracker hats, Leo, Harry, and Ron got up first from the table and she shrieked loudly. Leo clapped his hands over his ears.

"Mind lowering it a few decibels? I haven't lost my hearing yet and I'd like to keep it that way," he grumbled.

Trelawney gave him another highly affronted look and McGonagall took that opportunity to shoo them away before Leo ended up saying something that would land him in detention. Again. Hermione decided to remain behind, stating that she had something to discuss with McGonagall. The three boys simply shrugged and went on their way.

When they reached the portrait hole they found Sir Cadogan enjoying a Christmas party with a couple of monks, several previous headmasters of Hogwarts, and his fat pony. He pushed up his visor toasted them with a flagon of mead. Leo had a sudden desire to become a portrait at that moment.

"Happy — hic — Christmas! Password?"

"Scurvy cur," said Ron.

"And the same to you, sir!" roared Sir Cadogan, as the painting swung forward to admit them.

Harry went straight up to the dormitory, collected his and Leo's Firebolts, and ran downstairs for them to continue to admire. Personally, Leo didn't see the appeal. He enjoyed flying every bit as much as Harry, but he didn't really actually care all that much what sort of broom he had. All that mattered to him was that it was one of the first gifts – that he could recall, anyway – that his uncle had given him. The portrait hole opened, and Hermione came in, accompanied by McGonagall.

Though McGonagall was Head of Gryffindor House, Leo had only seen her in the common room once before, and that had been to make a very grave announcement. He had a deep sense of foreboding as Hermione walked around them, sat down, picked up the nearest book, and hid her face behind it.

"So that's them, is it?" said McGonagall beadily, walking over to the fireside and staring at the Firebolts. "Miss Granger has just informed me that you two have been sent broomsticks."

Leo inclined his head slightly. There was no point denying it, after all. The Firebolts were right there.

"May I?" said McGonagall, but she didn't wait for an answer before pulling the Firebolts out of their hands. She examined them carefully from handle to twig-ends. "Hmm. And there was no note at all? No card? No message of any kind?"

"No," said Harry blankly.

"I see..." said McGonagall. "Well, I'm afraid I will have to take these."

Leo sighed, expecting this.

"W — what?" said Harry, scrambling to his feet. "Why?"

"They will need to be checked for jinxes," said McGonagall. "Of course, I'm no expert, but I daresay Madam Hooch and Professor Flitwick will strip them down —"

"Strip them down?" repeated Ron, as though McGonagall was mad.

"It shouldn't take more than a few weeks," said McGonagall. "You two will have them back if we are sure they are jinx-free."

"There's nothing wrong with them!" said Harry, his voice shaking slightly. "Honestly, Professor —"

"You can't know that, Potter," said McGonagall, quite kindly, "not until you've flown it, at any rate, and I'm afraid that is out of the question until we are certain that they have not been tampered with. I shall keep you both informed."

McGonagall turned on her heel and carried the Firebolts out of the portrait hole, which closed behind her. Leo stared after her for a moment before coming to a decision and racing after her. He bounded out of the portrait hole, calling her name and skidding to a halt right in front of her. She raised an eyebrow at him

"You cannot change my mind, Black -"

"Harry's broom, it's from me," Leo said at once.

McGonagall looked taken aback.

"I felt bad after the last Quidditch match – after he lost his broom – and I knew he really wanted a Firebolt so I -"

"Then why not leave a note, Black?" McGonagall inquired, not really buying his story.

Leo grimaced.

"Dunno if you noticed, Professor, but Harry's got sort of an... issue. He doesn't think he's worth all the finer things in life. Personally, I blame the Dursleys," he told her, relieved to see her expression soften slightly. "I knew he'd argue with me about spending that much money so I sorta hoped it would remain anonymous... I didn't think it would cause a big problem or that you'd be called into it..."

McGonagall's lips thinned into a straight line.

"If you are lying to me, Black..." she trailed off, looking down at him sternly.

"Professor," Leo met her gaze evenly. "You know me. If there was even the slightest chance that this broom was sent to Harry by a mass-murdering lunatic bent on killing him, do you honestly think I'd let him within a hundred feet of that broom?"

"... I suppose not, Black," McGonagall inclined her head. "And what about your broom? You don't expect me to believe Potter sent it to you or that you sent it to yourself?"

"No," Leo sighed. "Guess my uncle's trying to curry my favor. 'Join the dark side, we have Firebolts!'"

McGonagall did not seem as amused by the situation as Leo did. Nonetheless, she allowed Leo to return Harry's broom to him while she inspected Leo's. To say that Ron and Harry were shocked to see him with a Firebolt was an understatement. What was even more surprising was when Leo handed it off to Harry with a mumbled 'Happy Christmas' before going upstairs to his dorm room.

_What a jolly old Christmas this has turned out to be._


	10. Chapter 10: The Rift

**Chapter 10: The Rift**

_We - the Marauders - spent the Christmas holidays at James' house. It was the most brilliant Christmas I've ever had. Few more like this, and I might actually start to warm up to the holiday... I hope Rose likes the ornament I made her._

* * *

Leo mainly kept to himself the remainder of the Christmas holidays – only deigning to leave Gryffindor tower to either visit Sirius or check in on Remus. He was glad that Harry now had his broom back, but having to give up something that his uncle – the one blood relative besides Harry that truly loved him – gave him was the most difficult thing he had ever done. Remus said that he showed great maturity and selflessness in his decision to make Harry happy. Leo merely mumbled that he didn't have a choice.

This was a lie. At least, to Remus it was. Leo was quite the persuasive person – not to mention the fact that he possessed the uncanny ability to lie extremely well – and could very well have found a way to get his own broom back. But not Harry's. He had known there was no way he'd be able to get them both. So, as always, he put Harry's happiness before his own and let the boy have his broom.

Despite this, Harry and Ron were no longer on speaking terms with Hermione. They felt that, even if Harry now had his broom back, a great injustice had been done to Leo and that what Hermione had done was nothing short of criminal. Leo himself didn't hold a grudge against the girl. He knew that she did what she thought was best to keep him and Harry safe, something Ron and Harry failed to understand. Leo wanted to tell her this but, unfortunately, she spent all her time in the library (which Leo avoided like the plague).

Leo was actually glad when classes started up again and he had something to distract him from dwelling on his broom. He was excited about Care of Magical Creatures class, where Hagrid brought out fire salamanders. Leo had a rather pleasant conversation with them, asking them a barrage of questions on how they were able to create and maintain their fire so effortlessly. The salamanders were delighted to have someone who – not only could understand them – but had the same love and fascination for fire that they did.

It was Defense Against the Dark Arts that Leo was keen to get to. Since term had officially started, he and Harry could finally get to work on their anti-dementor lessons.

"Ah yes," said Remus, when Leo and Harry reminded him of his promise at the end of class. "Let me see... how about eight o'clock on Thursday evening? The History of Magic classroom should be large enough... I'll have to think carefully about how we're going to do this... We can't bring a real dementor into the castle to practice on..."

"Still looks ill, doesn't he?" said Ron as he and Harry walked down the corridor together, heading to dinner. "What d'you reckon's the matter with him?"

There was a loud and impatient "tuh" from behind them. It was Hermione, who had been sitting at the feet of a suit of armor, repacking her bag, which was so full of books it wouldn't close.

"And what are you tutting at us for?" said Ron irritably.

Leo, who had been walking some distance behind them, stopped and watched them all with vague curiosity.

"Nothing," said Hermione in a lofty voice, heaving her bag back over her shoulder.

"Yes, you were," said Ron. "I said I wonder what's wrong with Lupin, and you —"

"Well, isn't it _obvious_?" said Hermione, with a look of maddening superiority.

Leo's expression paled.

"If you don't want to tell us, don't," snapped Ron.

"Fine," said Hermione haughtily, and she marched off.

Leo followed after her quickly, catching up with her just in time to grab her arm and pull her into an unused classroom. He locked the door, placing a Silencing Charm on it for good measure before releasing Hermione. She whirled around, taking her wand out and glaring at him before she realized it was Leo who had grabbed her.

"Leo? What are you -?"

"What do you know about M-Mr. Lupin?" Leo demanded, cutting across her sharply.

Hermione stared at him, mouth agape for a moment before she frowned. After a few seconds of thought, her eyes widened in excitement.

"You _know_, don't you?"

"Know what?" Leo tried to act dumb.

"Of course, if anyone could figure it out besides me, it would be you, Leo," Hermione was smiling triumphantly now. "When did you figure it out?"

"I'm not saying a damn thing until you tell me what you think you know," Leo answered crossly.

"Lupin's a werewolf," Hermione finally stated, much to Leo's displeasure. "Now, when did you figure it out?"

"First time I heard his name," Leo shrugged, figuring there was no point denying what Remy was at this point. "I mean, his name is basically Werewolf McWerewolf so -"

Hermione snorted.

"I'm being serious here, Leo -"

"No you're not, my uncle is," Leo couldn't help but say.

"You're unbelievable."

"Why, thank you."

"It wasn't a compliment."

"Really? Because it sounded like one."

Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Does anyone else know?" she asked, realizing she'd never get a straight answer out of the boy in regards to her other question.

"The staff does," Leo shrugged. "Snape makes him Wolfsbane Potion -"

"That's what you and Harry saw him bring!" Hermione gasped excitedly before frowning. "Wait, how did you know that?"

Leo only hesitated for a brief moment.

"Draco. I was pretending to quiz him on potions and described the one Lupin drank. Draco was able to tell me what it was pretty quickly after that."

Hermione scrutinized him.

"I can't tell if you're lying or not."

"Most people can't," he winked.

* * *

At seven-thirty on Thursday evening, Leo left the Shrieking Shack for the Remus' office. There, he saw Remus hauling a large packing case out of the room which the boy took from him without a word. Remus gave an appreciative smile before the two headed up to the History of Magic classroom where Harry stood waiting. Leo heaved the case onto Binns' desk.

"What's that?" said Harry.

"Another boggart," said Remus, stripping off his cloak. "I've been combing the castle ever since Tuesday, and very luckily, I found this one lurking inside Mr. Filch's filing cabinet. It's the nearest we'll get to a real dementor. The boggart will turn into a dementor when he sees you, so we'll be able to practice on him. I can store him in my office when we're not using him; there's a cupboard under my desk he'll like."

"Could also put him in Snape's coffin – er, bed," Leo snickered.

Remus merely gave a half-amused smile.

"So..." Remus had taken out his wand and indicated that Harry and Leo should do the same. "The spell I am going to try and teach you both is highly advanced magic — well beyond Ordinary Wizarding Level. It is called the Patronus Charm."

"How does it work?" said Harry nervously.

"Well, when it works correctly, it conjures up a Patronus," said Remus, shooting Leo a look when he looked about to interrupt. "Which is a kind of anti-dementor — a guardian that acts as a shield between you and the dementor."

"Are we talking like an actual shield – a force field of some sort – or some type of giant thing that stands in front of you and clobbers dementors?" Leo inquired curiously.

"The Patronus is a kind of positive force, a projection of the very things that the dementor feeds upon — hope, happiness, the desire to survive — but it cannot feel despair, as real humans can, so the dementors can't hurt it. But I must warn you both that the charm might be too advanced for you. Many qualified wizards have difficulty with it."

"That sounds like a challenge," Leo narrowed his eyes in delight. "And you know how I feel about those."

Remus gave a small smile in response.

"What does a Patronus look like?" said Harry curiously.

"Each one is unique to the wizard who conjures it."

"And how do you conjure it?"

"With an incantation, which will work only if you are concentrating, with all your might, on a single, very happy memory."

Leo cast his mind about before settling on when he and Harry had first found Grimmauld Place – when they realized they had a home other than the Dursleys. A real home. Leo grinned broadly at the memory of chasing Harry around the house that day.

"Got it," he said as Harry nodded beside him.

"The incantation is this —" Remus cleared his throat. "_Expecto patronum_!"

Leo repeated the spell a few times under his breath, making sure he had the pronunciation down while Harry did the same.

"Concentrating hard on your happy memory?"

"Oh — yeah —" said Harry in a tone that made it quite clear he had not been. "Expecto patrono — no, patronum — sorry — _expecto patronum,_ _expecto patronum_."

Something whooshed suddenly out of the end of his wand; it looked like a wisp of silvery gas.

"Did you see that?" said Harry excitedly. "Something happened!"

"Very good," said Remus, smiling. "Why don't you give it a try before we bring out the dementor, Leo?"

Leo gave a small shrug before pointing his wand forward and concentrating hard on his chosen memory.

"_Expecto patronum_."

A small wisp of silver, slightly brighter than Harry's had been whooshed out of the end of his wand. Remus looked pleased, but Leo could only feel mild disappointment. He had been hoping for something big and flashy – to nail the spell the first time like he usually did. _Suppose Remy's right. This is more difficult._

"Right, then — ready to try it on a dementor? Leo, you stand back a bit. We don't want the dementor turning into Quirrell. When the dementor comes out, I want you both to practice your spells, alright?"

Leo and Harry both nodded. Remus grasped the lid of the packing case and pulled.

A dementor rose slowly from the box, its hooded face turned toward Harry, one glistening, scabbed hand gripping its cloak. The lamps around the classroom flickered and went out. The dementor stepped from the box and started to sweep silently toward Harry, drawing a deep, rattling breath. Leo had to fight the urge to jump in front of his cousin as a wave of cold swept over him. He raised his wand.

_"Rosie, take the boys and run – fast!" _

_"Lil, he put wards up! We can't Apparate!"_

Leo faltered slightly, the memory of him and Harry running around quickly fading from his mind as Harry yelled out the Patronus Charm, producing nothing. As Harry sunk to the ground, Leo grasped onto the first memory that came to mind.

_"Expecto patronum!"_

A very thin, shimmery veil appeared in front of him as Remus leaped forward, banishing the Boggart back to the case. The threat gone for the moment, Leo ran over to his cousin, shouting his name in an effort to wake him up. Harry jerked back to life.

"Sorry," he muttered, sitting up with Leo's assistance.

"Are you all right?" said Remus.

"Yes..." Harry pulled himself up on one of the desks and leaned against it.

"Here —" Remus handed him and Leo each a Chocolate Frog. "Eat this before we try again. I didn't expect you to do it your first time; in fact, I would have been astounded if you had."

"Bet Leo managed it," Harry mumbled as he took a bite.

"It was a very thin veil," Leo remarked with a small frown, stuffing the whole frog in his mouth. "Doubt it'd keep out a squirrel much less a dementor."

Harry snorted, somewhat cheered by this.

"What memory did you think of?"

"Well, I had one – then I lost it. So I scrambled to find a new one. Ended up settling on the time I blasted Lockhart across the Quidditch Pitch," he gave a fond smile. "Always brings a smile to my face."

Harry chuckled as Remus gave a wry smile at the pair.

"Should we call it a night or would you two like to continue?"

The two sobered, nodding in determination.

"All right then..." said Remus. "You two might want to select another memory, a happy memory, I mean, to concentrate on... The ones you chose don't seem to be strong enough..."

"I take some offense to that," Leo mumbled.

Nonetheless, he searched his mind for another memory, deciding to edge away from his second year. With a few scattered moments of light, it hadn't exactly been his happiest year. _That vampire essay._ He grinned broadly, recalling that it was still up in the Entrance Hall. _Need to replace it... I'll do it the next time Snivellus irks me._

He nodded at Harry.

"Ready?" said Remus, gripping the box lid.

"Ready," said Harry.

"Go!" said Remus, pulling off the lid. The room went icily cold and dark once more. The dementor glided forward, drawing its breath; one rotting hand was extending toward Harry —

"_Expecto patronum_!" Harry yelled. "_Expecto patronum! Expecto Pat —"_

_"You haven't got it in you, boy!"_

_"Crucio!"_

"_Expecto patronum_!" Leo shouted in a slightly panicked tone, focusing hard on Snape's expression.

Nothing happened at first, but then a slightly stronger veil appeared, separating Harry from the dementor as Remus once again banished the Boggart back into the packing case. Leo collapsed into a nearby desk, rubbing his face – which had broken out in a cold sweat during the battle against the dementor. Remus made to come over to him, but the boy waved him away to go check on Harry, who was passed out on the floor.

Remus tapped his face a few times, saying his name until Harry finally came to.

"I heard my dad," Harry mumbled. "That's the first time I've ever heard him — he tried to take on Voldemort himself, to give my mum time to run for it..."

"You heard James?" said Remus in a strange voice.

"Yeah..." Harry looked at him quizzically. "Why — you didn't know my dad, did you?"

"I — I did, as a matter of fact," said Remus. "We were friends at Hogwarts. Listen, Harry, Leo — perhaps we should leave it here for tonight. This charm is ridiculously advanced... I shouldn't have suggested putting the two of you through this..."

"No!" said Harry. He got up again. "I'll have one more go! I'm not thinking of happy enough things, that's what it is... hang on..."

Remus walked over to Leo while Harry paced. The blonde glanced up as he felt a hand on his shoulder and followed it to see Remus' worried expression.

"Pretty sure I already know the answer to this but – do you wish to continue?"

Leo hesitated for a moment before nodding stubbornly, saying he needed a minute to think. He wracked his brain for a happy memory – one that could easily overshadow the ones he had already thought of. Immediately, the first day of the summer holidays came to mind. It was the first time he had hugged Sirius – the first time he had his uncle well and truly back in his life. He rose to his feet and stood behind Harry.

"Ready?" said Remus, who looked as though he were doing this against his better judgment. "Concentrating hard? Alright — go!"

He pulled off the lid of the case for the third time, and the dementor rose out of it; the room fell cold and dark —

"_EXPECTO PATRONUM_!" Harry bellowed. "_EXPECTO PATRONUM! EXPECTO PATRONUM_!"

And Leo was bellowing behind him, focusing solely on the memory of Sirius – what it felt like to actually have him home. To hug him again. He pushed the screaming, the curses, the laughter all from his mind as a bright, transparent shape came out of his wand. It was formless, but it joined Harry's silver shadow and hovered between him and the dementor.

"_Riddikulus!_" roared Remus, springing forward.

There was a loud crack, and Leo and Harry's cloudy Patronuses vanished along with the dementor; Leo sank to the floor, having not felt this exhausted since their adventure with the giant spiders. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Remus forcing the boggart back into the packing case with his wand; it had turned into the moon again.

"Excellent!" Remus said, striding over to stand between Leo and Harry. "Excellent, both of you! That was definitely a start!"

Leo gave a weak thumbs up.

"Can we have another go? Just one more go?" Harry asked.

Leo turned paler and looked as though he was about to be quite ill at the idea of going another round. Luckily, Remus seemed to notice his look.

"Not now," said Remus firmly. "I think you've both had enough for one night. Here —"

He handed Harry and Leo each a large bar of Honeydukes' best chocolate. Leo felt like he was about to cry tears of joy as he bit into it.

"Eat the lot, or Madam Pomfrey will be after my blood. Same time next week?"

"Well, I was planning on taking over the world that day but... I suppose I could fit you in," Leo hummed, feeling much better after taking a rather large chunk out of his bar.

"Thank you, Leo, you're too kind," Remus replied dryly.

"Professor Lupin?" Harry said suddenly. "If you knew my dad, you must've known Sirius Black as well."

Remus turned very quickly as Leo, not expecting the remark, choked on his chocolate. Remus patted him heartily on the back. It was only after Leo could breathe on his own again that Remus finally spoke.

"What gives you that idea?" he said sharply.

"Nothing — I mean, I just knew they were friends at Hogwarts too..."

Remus's face relaxed.

"Yes, I knew him," he said shortly. "You two'd better be off. It's getting late."

* * *

Ravenclaw played Slytherin a week after the start of term. Slytherin won, though narrowly. According to Wood, this was good news for Gryffindor, who would take second place if they beat Ravenclaw too. He, therefore, increased the number of team practices to five a week. Leo was somewhat glad that he didn't have his Firebolt at this point since Wood wasn't forcing him to attend until he got it back. That freed up a lot of time that he now spent with either Sirius, – where they came up with brilliant prank ideas – Remus, - who tried to dissuade him from pulling some of those pranks – and the Minirauders – who he pulled all the pranks with. He gained several detentions and lost so many points that Sirius said he couldn't be prouder.

January faded imperceptibly into February, with no change in the bitterly cold weather. Leo had yet to hear about his broom, though Ron constantly prodded him to ask McGonagall about it. He refused, knowing that badgering her wouldn't get him his broom back, it would only irk her.

On the plus side, Leo felt his and Harry's anti-dementor lessons were going well. Or, at least, his were. He could now make out a large, four-legged shape in the silvery mist his wand was producing. What it was, he couldn't fathom. There were so many creatures that had four legs. He was hoping for a dragon, but Remus said it was much too small. Harry, however, wasn't doing as well and seemed to grow increasingly frustrated with himself as a result.

"You're expecting too much of yourself," said Remus, sternly in their fourth week of practice. "For a thirteen-year-old wizard, even an indistinct Patronus is a huge achievement. You aren't passing out anymore, are you?"

"I thought a Patronus would — charge the dementors down or something," said Harry dispiritedly. "Make them disappear —"

"The true Patronus does do that," said Remus. "But you – both of you – have achieved a great deal in a very short space of time. If the dementors put in an appearance at your next Quidditch match, you will be able to keep them at bay long enough to get back to the ground."

"Only if it's a teenage dementor and a toddler," Leo snorted. "Doubt we could do much if the whole bloody armada showed up."

"I have complete confidence in both of you," said Remus, smiling. "Here — you've earned a drink. Something from the Three Broomsticks. You won't have tried it before — And a little something special for you, Leo -"

Leo squealed with delight as Remus conjured him a mug of hot chocolate before pulling out two bottles of butterbeer from his briefcase.

"Butterbeer!" said Harry, without thinking. "Yeah, I like that stuff!"

Leo snickered into his mug as Remus raised an eyebrow.

"Oh — Ron and Hermione brought me some back from Hogsmeade," Harry lied quickly.

"I see," said Remus, looking faintly amused. "Well — let's drink to a Gryffindor victory against Ravenclaw! Not that I'm supposed to take sides, as a teacher..." he added hastily.

"Come off it – once a Gryffindor, always a Gryffindor," Leo snorted. "You're allowed to root for your house team. Snape does it, and I'm not entirely sure he even knows what a Quaffle _is_ -"

"Thank you, Leo. I think I get what you're trying to say," Remus smiled wryly. "No need to insult your potions teacher."

Leo mumbled something about Snape making it too easy before quietly sipping his hot chocolate and sighing in contentment.

"What's under a dementor's hood?" Harry asked suddenly.

Remus shot a glance at Leo, who had a tendency to choke or drop something whenever Harry randomly asked questions. Luckily, this time, the boy had his mug in a death grip so tight he didn't seem to be letting go any time soon.

"Hmmm... well, the only people who really know are in no condition to tell us. You see, the dementor lowers its hood only to use its last and worst weapon," Remus finally said once he was sure Leo was alright.

"What's that?"

"They call it the Dementor's Kiss," said Remus, with a slightly twisted smile. "It's what dementors do to those they wish to destroy utterly. I suppose there must be some kind of mouth under there because they clamp their jaws upon the mouth of the victim and — and suck out his soul."

"That sounds like the worst snogging session I've ever heard of," Leo remarked before grinning widely. "I imagine that's what being kissed by Snape feels like -"

"Thank you, Leo, for that lovely mental image," Remus cut across him in a very dry tone.

Leo gave a thumbs up before finishing up his mug of hot chocolate and asking for another. By the time he finished his third, Harry finally finished his butterbeer and the two traipsed off toward Gryffindor tower, discussing what memories they had used for the lesson and which ones would be better. They were so engrossed in their conversation that they walked headlong into McGonagall halfway up the stairs.

"Do watch where you two are going!"

"Sorry, Professor —"

"I've just been looking for you in the Gryffindor common room, Black. Well, here it is, we've done everything we could think of, and there doesn't seem to be anything wrong with it at all — you've got a very good friend somewhere, Black..."

Leo smiled brightly as she held out his Firebolt, managing to stammer out a thank you before he and Harry dashed up to the tower. They turned into the corridor to Gryffindor Tower and saw Neville Longbottom, pleading with Sir Cadogan, who seemed to be refusing him entrance.

"I wrote them down!" Neville was saying tearfully. "But I must've dropped them somewhere!"

"A likely tale!" roared Sir Cadogan. Then, spotting Harry and Leo: "Good even, my fine young yeomen! Come clap this loon in irons. He is trying to force entry to the chambers within!"

"I've lost the passwords!" Neville told them miserably. "I made him tell me what passwords he was going to use this week, because he keeps changing them, and now I don't know what I've done with them!"

"Oddsbodkins," said Harry to Sir Cadogan, who looked extremely disappointed and reluctantly swung forward to let them into the common room. There was a sudden, excited murmur as every head turned and the next moment, Leo was surrounded by people exclaiming over his Firebolt.

"Where'd you get it, Leo?"

_"Broom shop."_

"Will you let me have a go?"

_"Hell no."_

"Have you ridden it yet, Leo?"

_"Oh, yeah, rode it last year before it even came out."_

"Ravenclaw'll have no chance, they're all on Cleansweep Sevens!"

_"They didn't really have much chance to begin with but okay -"_

"Can I just hold it, Leo?"

_"Try it, and I'll beat you over the head with it."_

Leo's sarcastic and sometimes downright violent responses didn't seem to affect the enthusiasm of the crowd of people swarming him. Harry hadn't had to deal with this, owing to the fact that Wood wanted to keep it a secret that their Seeker had a Firebolt. After ten minutes or so, the crowd dispersed and Leo, Harry, and Ron – who had joined up with them midway through - had a clear view of Hermione, the only person who hadn't rushed over to them, bent over her work and carefully avoiding their eyes. The three approached her table and at last, she looked up.

"Minnie gave me back my sweeping stick," Leo informed her excitedly.

"See, Hermione? There wasn't anything wrong with it!" said Ron.

"Well — there _might_ have been!" said Hermione. "I mean, at least you know now that it's safe!"

"Safety is -" Leo began.

"Overrated," Harry finished for him with a roll of his eyes.

Leo grinned widely before saying he needed to put his broom upstairs. Ron immediately volunteered and, reluctantly, Leo allowed him to do so. After several threats of bodily harm should it get so much as a scratch, of course. He took the Firebolt and, holding it as if it were made of glass, carried it away up the boys' staircase.

Harry and Leo sat down at the table beside Hermione. They looked around at the cluttered table, at the long Arithmancy essay on which the ink was still glistening, at the even longer Muggle Studies essay ('Explain Why Muggles Need Electricity') and at the rune translation Hermione was now poring over. Leo glanced at her Ancient Runes essay before informing her that she mixed up ehwaz and eihwaz. With a gasp, she hurried to correct it.

"How are you getting through all this stuff?" Harry asked her.

"Oh, well — you know — working hard," said Hermione.

"Power naps and a lot of coffee – not very healthy, Hermione," Leo informed her, receiving a very cross look in return.

"Why don't you just drop a couple of subjects?" Harry asked.

"I couldn't do that!" said Hermione, looking scandalized.

"You don't need Muggle Studies and Divination is a load of bollocks," Leo snorted.

"Arithmancy looks terrible," Harry added, picking up a very complicated-looking number chart.

"Oh no, it's wonderful!" said Hermione earnestly. "It's my favorite subject! It's —"

But exactly what was wonderful about Arithmancy, the two never found out. At that precise moment, a strangled yell echoed down the boys' staircase. The whole common room fell silent, staring, petrified, at the entrance. Then came hurried footsteps, growing louder and louder — and then Ron came leaping into view, dragging with him a bedsheet.

"LOOK!" he bellowed, striding over to Hermione's table. "LOOK!" he yelled, shaking the sheets in her face.

"Ron, what —?"

"SCABBERS! LOOK! SCABBERS!"

Hermione was leaning away from Ron, looking utterly bewildered. Leo looked down at the sheet Ron was holding. There was something red on it. Something that looked suspiciously like —

"BLOOD!" Ron yelled into the stunned silence. "HE'S GONE! AND YOU KNOW WHAT WAS ON THE FLOOR?"

"N — no," said Hermione in a trembling voice.

Ron threw something down onto Hermione's rune translation. Leo, Hermione, and Harry leaned forward. Lying on top of the weird, spiky shapes were several long, ginger cat hairs. Crookshanks chose that moment to appear from the girls' dormitory, pawing at Leo's leg under the table. Leo raised an eyebrow as the cat meowed at him before frowning.

"Relax, Ron, Crookshanks didn't eat P-Scabbers -"

"SAYS WHO?" Ron roared. "THERE'S PROOF RIGHT HERE -"

"Circumstantial," Leo replied airily. "Crookshanks was up in the girls' dorm and he says he didn't do it -"

"Oh, he says he didn't do it?" Ron rolled his eyes mockingly. "Y'know what? I'm tired of putting up with this 'I pretend to know what the animals are saying' bull that you've been pulling for years -"

"I'm not pretending!" Leo shouted indignantly.

"Then you're mental!" Ron yelled back. "I should've said this a long time ago before it got too far – you're insane! Absolutely barking! Only a lunatic constantly chases after danger! You're mad! Just like -"

"Choose your words carefully, Weasley," Leo growled out lowly.

"-just like your mass-murdering, evil, lunatic of an uncle -"

A crack and a thud sounded as Ron fell back on the floor with a yell, clutching his bloody and broken nose. Leo was on his feet, fist held up and shaking uncontrollably as the fire behind him flared up and danced menacingly behind him. He glared around at everyone else, daring them to say something. They all stood there in stunned silence, moving out of the way as he stormed past them all through the portrait hole, through the corridor, and down the stairs.

He stopped at the door to Remus' office, debating internally for a moment before knocking on the door. After a few seconds, Remus' voice told him to come in. He entered, closing the door behind him as Moony looked up, seeming shocked by his appearance.

"Leo, what -?" Remus began, rising from his desk and starting to stride over to him.

He was taken aback when Leo abruptly enveloped him in a hug and felt wetness on the front of his robes.

"I hate this," Leo sobbed angrily. "I wish they all knew the truth about – about him."

Remus pulled him closer, resting his chin on top of his head as he patted his back.

"Me too, Leo. Me too."


	11. Chapter 11: The Knight and the Unicorn

**Chapter 11: The Knight and the Unicorn**

_The Marauders decided to start working on their Animagus transformations. They're excited to see what they'll turn into, but I told them they'd be waiting for a while. The process of becoming an Animagus is long and difficult for those who aren't familiar with the process. Lucky for them, I have experience._

* * *

Leo avoided Ron like he avoided the library after the incident in the common room. He slept in the common room at night – at least until Fred and George dragged him up to their dorm one night and told him he could stay with them. Leo tried to refuse at first, but the twins would hear none of it. Their brother was being a prat and one of their best mates needed help, and that was that. At mealtimes, he took to eating either in the kitchens, with Remus, or with Sirius.

Sirius was beyond furious when Leo told him what happened between him and Ron – though he couldn't decide if that was because Pettigrew had disappeared again or because Ron was a prick. Sirius spent most of their time ranting and raving about what a bloody git Ron was, as well as offering up some very creative forms of revenge that Leo didn't think he would do. He was already getting payback, and he wasn't even trying to.

Any time he and Ron were in the same general vicinity, the bottoms of his robes spontaneously caught fire. Normally, Leo would have been somewhat alarmed by this loss of control, but he felt nothing but vindicated when he recalled how badly the boy treated him and Hermione. Unfortunately, about the tenth time this happened, McGonagall informed Leo that Dumbledore wanted to see him.

With an angry grunt, the boy took the piece of paper containing the password to Dumbledore's office. As he walked down the halls, the torches lining the walls would flare up, dimming down as he got a fair distance away. He eventually stopped before a large and extremely ugly stone gargoyle. He glanced down at the paper in his hands.

"Pumpkin pastry," he told the gargoyle in an irritable tone.

The gargoyle sprang suddenly to life and hopped aside as the wall behind him split in two. Behind the wall was a spiral staircase that was moving smoothly upward, like an escalator. As he stepped onto it, Leo heard the wall close behind him. He rose upward in circles, higher and higher, until at last, slightly dizzy, Leo saw a gleaming oak door ahead, with a brass knocker in the shape of a griffin.

He rapped on the door and entered when it opened, glancing around in vague interest. It was a large and beautiful circular room, full of funny little noises. A number of curious silver instruments stood on spindle-legged tables, whirring and emitting little puffs of smoke. The walls were covered with portraits of old headmasters and headmistresses, all of whom were snoozing gently in their frames. There was also an enormous, claw-footed desk where Dumbledore sat, his fingers steepled in front of him.

"Welcome, Mr. Black. Please, take a seat," Dumbledore informed him with a kind smile, gesturing at one of the chairs in front of his desk.

Leo gritted his teeth before stalking forward and placing his rear upon the seat. Dumbledore surveyed him for a moment, though Leo noticed he tended to avoid making direct eye contact. _Maybe he's scared of a thirteen-year-old wizard._ Leo almost rolled his eyes sarcastically. Finally, the old man spoke.

"I suppose you must be wondering why I have called you here -"

"Weasley's robes keep catching on fire, I'm well aware," Leo informed him in the driest tone he could manage.

"And I daresay you don't have much control over it, correct?" Dumbledore asked, disregarding his attitude.

Leo inclined his head.

"Your father had the same problem -" Dumbledore began.

"Don't."

Dumbledore looked taken aback.

"Pardon?" he inquired.

"Don't talk about him – don't talk about my mother. Just – don't," Leo snapped out, fingers gripping the chair as the fire in Dumbledore's fireplace rose up. "I'm tired of people talking about them – people who didn't even really know them. I'm tired of all the comparisons – as though telling me I'm like them is supposed to somehow make me feel better."

He rose to his feet, his hands shaking.

"It doesn't. All it does is remind me that I'm here and they're not. All it does is serve as a constant reminder that I'll never really get to know them," he took a deep breath before continuing in the coldest voice he could muster, "So, if your whole speech hinged on talking about my father, I think we're done here."

He whirled around, stalking toward the door, which banged open at his approach. He took the stairs down before exiting past the gargoyle. He stalked down the halls, not entirely sure where he was going as he strode out of the double doors to the Entrance Hall, walked through the courtyard, across the bridge, and down the grounds. For a moment, he debated going to visit Sirius, but he wasn't really in the mood to hear more ranting about Ron.

Instead, he made his way toward a beech tree that stood close to the lake and sat beneath it, idly skipping rocks across the water's surface. After a few minutes, he felt a wet nose touch his hand and jumped in surprise. He turned his head, expecting to see Padfoot, but instead, Knight sat there, staring at him curiously. Leo reached out a hand hesitantly and the wolf bowed his head somewhat and allowed himself to be stroked.

"You ever feel so angry and sad at the same time that you feel as though you're about to explode?" Leo sighed, not really expecting a response.

Knight stared at him for a moment before rising to his paws and giving a small bark. Leo raised an eyebrow before frowning, having a hard time understanding what he was saying. Knight stepped forward, grabbing him by the sleeve of his robes and giving a gentle tug in the direction of the forest. His curiosity getting the better of him, he rose to his feet and followed the large wolf into the trees and down a winding path deeper into the forest. They walked for about ten minutes before Knight suddenly stopped and gave a low, almost crooning sort of howl.

Leo was about to ask what was going on when a white shape emerged from the trees and his mouth fell open in shock. There stood a unicorn, its fur such a bright shade of white that it made freshly fallen snow look grey in comparison. Its hooves looked as though it was made out of pure gold and its single white horn seemed to glow in the gloom of the forest.

The unicorn regarded Leo for a moment before turning to Knight and letting loose a small whinny. Knight gave a low bark and a wag of his tail and the unicorn turned to look at Leo once more, this time with curiosity flashing in its blueish eyes. The unicorn stalked forward, sniffing him over before releasing a huff of air in mild approval. It dipped its head, allowing Leo to hesitantly reach a hand up and stroke the unicorn's head. The unicorn gave a sigh of contentment and, for that moment, all the anger and sadness that had been building up through the boy over the course of the year vanished. He wasn't exactly happy, but he was content, and that was saying something.

The moment ended abruptly when Leo heard his name being called off in the distance. In an instant, Knight and the unicorn took off into the trees and vanished from sight, leaving the boy standing there with his hand still hanging in the air. Rapid footsteps approached him, and Leo was surprised to see Remus running towards him with a worried look on his face, Padfoot on his heels.

"Leo!" Remus shouted with relief as he reached him. "What're you doing here? I was worried when I saw you weren't with Padfoot -"

"Knight showed me a unicorn," Leo replied in a somewhat dazed tone.

Remus stared at him for a moment in concern as Padfoot sniffed the ground furiously, the tip of his tail twitching slightly. Moony placed a hand on Leo's shoulder and shook him lightly, hoping to bring him back from wherever his mind appeared to have wandered off to. Leo blinked before shaking his head.

"Moony? Padfoot? What're you doing here?" he asked, frowning slightly in confusion.

"Dumbledore called me in after you stormed out of his office," Remus informed him, grabbing Leo gently by the arm and beginning to lead him out of the forest, Padfoot following at a slower pace and constantly glancing behind him. "When you didn't immediately come to my office, I assumed you went to go see Sirius. When he said he hadn't seen you, we grew concerned and went out looking for you."

"Sorry," Leo mumbled. "I didn't mean to worry you."

"I know," Remus replied, gently squeezing his arm and giving a small smile. "Should've known you'd go to the forest. Cas always -"

He stopped abruptly, looking at Leo warily as though afraid he might explode and storm off. Leo noticed his look and couldn't help but feel a stab of guilt.

"It's alright if you and Pads talk about them," Leo informed the man. "It's just... I don't like it when people who barely knew them try to talk about them. You were my dad's best mate and Paddy was his brother. Who knows them better than you two?"

"Are you sure?" Remus asked. "If it upsets you -"

"It doesn't," Leo assured him. "Because I know you're not just talking about them for me, you're talking about them for you."

Remus gave a sad smile in response.

* * *

Leo was forced to resume practices upon regaining his Firebolt. He and Harry were reddish blurs as they streaked across the pitch after the Snitch, dodging Bludgers and weaving around their teammates. At the end of their final practice before their match against Ravenclaw, Ron appeared, asking Harry for a ride on his broom. Leo left quickly after that and joined Hermione in the common room, silently working on their homework.

The next morning, Leo awoke before everyone else and made his way to the Quidditch Pitch to fly a few laps before the big game. He finally landed at a quarter to eleven and entered the locker room just as his team entered to change.

"You know what we've got to do," said Wood as they prepared to leave the locker rooms. "If we lose this match, we're out of the running, just — just fly like you did in practice yesterday, and we'll be okay!"

Leo laid on the bench as they walked outside, listening to the commentary provided by fellow Gryffindor Lee Jordan.

"They're off, and the big excitement this match is the Firebolt that Harry Potter is flying for Gryffindor. According to _Which Broomstick,_ the Firebolt's going to be the broom of choice for the national teams at this year's World Championship —"

"Jordan, would you mind telling us what's going on in the match?" interrupted McGonagall's voice.

"Right you are, Professor — just giving a bit of background information — the Firebolt, incidentally, has a built-in auto-brake and —"

"Jordan!"

"Okay, okay, Gryffindor in possession, Katie Bell of Gryffindor, heading for goal..."

He heard cheers from Gryffindor not long after that which quickly turned to a great "Ooooooh" of disappointment followed by cheers from Ravenclaw. At this point, Leo wondered what he was even doing on the team since he had only ever flown one game. _Maybe I should find another hobby._ He mused.

"Gryffindor leads by eighty points to zero, and look at that Firebolt go! Potter's really putting it through its paces now, see it turn — Chang's Comet is just no match for it, the Firebolt's precision — balance is really noticeable in these long —"

"JORDAN! ARE YOU BEING PAID TO ADVERTISE FIREBOLTS? GET ON WITH THE COMMENTARY!"

Leo snorted in amusement. He then rose to his feet and walked out of the changing room, deciding he'd have a better chance of finding out what was going on if he actually watched the game for himself.

Ravenclaw was pulling back; they had now scored three goals, which put Gryffindor only fifty points ahead — if Chang got the Snitch before Harry, Ravenclaw would win. Harry dropped lower, narrowly avoiding a Ravenclaw Chaser, as he scanned the field frantically. Leo spotted the Snitch circling the Gryffindor goal post. So did Harry.

He accelerated toward it, only to stop as Chang suddenly blocked him.

"HARRY, THIS IS NO TIME TO BE A GENTLEMAN!" Wood roared as Harry swerved to avoid a collision. "KNOCK HER OFF HER BROOM IF YOU HAVE TO!"

_And here I was wondering why you don't have a girlfriend, Wood. _Leo rolled his eyes as he chortled with laughter. The Snitch had vanished again. Harry turned his Firebolt upward and was soon twenty feet above the game. Chang began tailing him, much to the blonde's irritation. _Not good enough to find the Snitch herself, so she figures she'll let Harry do all the work._

Harry dived again, and Chang, thinking he'd seen the Snitch, tried to follow; Harry pulled out of the dive very sharply; she hurtled downward; he rose fast as a bullet once more. He then suddenly hurtled toward the Ravenclaw goal posts where Leo spotted the golden, fluttering form of the Snitch. But that wasn't all that caught his eye.

Four hooded figures had made their way onto the pitch. For a moment, Leo thought they were dementors. Then he recalled that dementors didn't walk and strode further onto the pitch, angrily flicking his wand into his hand. He wasn't the only one that saw them, Harry noticed them as well.

He shot a Patronus out of his wand just as Leo pointed his own, shouting, "_Incarcerous_!"

Ropes flew out of his wand, binding one of the middle figures and sending them toppling to the ground as he fired three more at the others. He walked toward them triumphantly as Harry grabbed the Snitch and the Gryffindors stormed the field, cheering loudly. Leo flicked his wand, murmuring a few words as their hoods fell off, revealing Flint, Crabbe, Goyle, and -

"Linguini," Leo raised his eyebrows. "I know I've said that I don't like seeing your face around the castle and that you should hide it, but this isn't quite what I meant."

Zabini glared at him mutinously, prompting Leo to grin widely, his mood better than it had been in days. McGonagall appeared at his side shortly after, positively shaking with fury.

"An unworthy trick!" she shouted. "A low and cowardly attempt to sabotage the Gryffindor Seeker! Detention for all of you, and fifty points from Slytherin! I shall be speaking to Professor Dumbledore about this, make no mistake! Ah, here he comes now!"

Leo immediately fled the scene, ducking into the crowd of Gryffindors. He hadn't spoken to Dumbledore since that incident in his office, and he had no wish to change that. Remus came up behind him, clapping him on the shoulder and commending him for his well-placed spell-casting. Leo grinned, swelling with pride as he went back to the changing rooms, changed out of his Quidditch robes, and headed back to the castle.

Instead of going to the Gryffindor party – where Ron would most assuredly be – he went to Remus' office and had a lovely cup of tea with the man. Some time into the visit, Leo pulled out the Map – which he now always kept on his person – and opened it, idly perusing it for any sign of Pettigrew. He had been doing this every free moment he had ever since the rat had scarpered and still had yet to find him. He was confident that Pettigrew hadn't yet left the grounds, but where he was, he couldn't be sure.

Sometime around midnight, Leo fell asleep in his chair and Remus, not having the heart to wake him, merely put a cloak over him and let him sleep. A few hours later, Leo felt wetness against his hand and a soft voice saying his name. A hand gently shook his shoulder. Leo opened his eyes slightly with a groan to see Remus standing in front of him, his face grim with Padfoot sitting next to him. Leo stared at the dog for a moment.

"Oh good Lord, what did you do _this_ time?" Leo groaned.

Padfoot merely whined.


	12. Chapter 12: It's Time

**Chapter 12: It's Time**

_We won the Quidditch Cup for the second year in a row. I was surprised James' head didn't inflate to the point where he was floating on the ceiling. I can't really blame his giddiness, though. Rose kissed me on the cheek today in congratulations. I don't think my face will return to its normal color for weeks._

* * *

Leo's question was answered minutes later. A rapid knock came at Remus' door and Padfoot ran to hide under the desk. Leo quickly wiped the Map, stuffing it in his pocket as Remus answered the door to reveal McGonagall, who was quite pale. She was in the midst of telling Remus that Sirius had broken into Gryffindor tower and Leo was missing when she spotted the boy sitting at the Defense professor's desk, looking like he had just woken up.

She gave a sigh of relief at seeing he was all right before instructing him to remain there while she and the rest of the professors searched the castle for Black. Leo gave a tired salute as she left, Remus following suit after giving Leo's shoulder a small squeeze. A minute after he left, Leo locked the door, took out the Map, and opened it. He examined it for a moment.

"It's safe to come out now," he whispered.

Padfoot peeked his head out from under the desk before he turned back into his human form and sat in Remus' chair. He tried propping his feet on Remy's desk but stopped when Leo threw a nearby book at him irritably.

"_What did you do_?" Leo hissed.

"Paid your old friend Ronnie a visit -"

"You _what_?"

Leo was pleased to see that Sirius shrank somewhat in his chair.

"Well, I, er..." he stammered for a moment. "I didn't like what he said to you, so I thought some good old-fashioned revenge was in order. I sliced up his hangings – just wanted to scare him a bit. Didn't think he'd scream as loud as a girl when you catch them in the shower."

Leo snorted at this comparison despite himself, not really wanting to know how Sirius knew this. He wasn't sure how he felt about his uncle's recent foray into the castle. On one hand, it was incredibly reckless and stupid – he could have gotten caught! On the other, he was touched by how much his uncle cared about him that he was willing to risk a cell in Azkaban just to make him feel better.

"Uncle Siri?"

"Hmm?"

"You're a git," Leo then gave a small smile. "But thanks."

Sirius grinned in response.

* * *

Leo wasn't able to sneak Padfoot out until dawn. On his way back he started to see signs of tighter security; Flitwick could be seen teaching the front doors to recognize a large picture of Sirius; Filch was suddenly bustling up and down the corridors, boarding up everything from tiny cracks in the walls to mouse holes. Sir Cadogan had been fired. His portrait had been taken back to its lonely landing on the seventh floor, and the Fat Lady was back. She had been expertly restored, but was still extremely nervous, and had agreed to return to her job only on the condition that she was given extra protection. A bunch of surly security trolls had been hired to guard her. They paced the corridor in a menacing group, talking in grunts and comparing the size of their clubs.

Ron had become an instant celebrity, much to Leo's growing irritation. He constantly regaled the common room with the tale of how Sirius Black had almost murdered him in his sleep. The first time Leo had heard this, he had merely rolled his eyes and turned back to his Runes essay. By around the third telling of the story, he gathered his things and departed the tower, seeking refuge with Draco.

Draco seemed sympathetic to his plight – seeing as how he also had a relative (Bellatrix) who was a murderer - but also nervous at being around Leo. The boy ignored this at first, figuring if Draco had something to say, he would say it. Unfortunately, patience was never Leo's strong suit. About an hour into their time together, Leo finally asked him what was wrong.

Draco was hesitant at first but finally confessed that he knew Black wasn't working for the Dark Lord. Leo raised an eyebrow and asked how he knew this. Draco explained that he had overheard his parents talking and that his mother had mentioned that Sirius had been one of the black sheep of the family, having never believed in pure-blood superiority or in Voldemort.

Leo was silent for a moment before he finally confided in the boy that Sirius hadn't murdered those people either – it had been Pettigrew. Draco looked shocked and disbelieving at first but listened dutifully as Leo filled him in on the story Sirius had told him in his first letter. Draco was appalled by the end of it, surprised to hear that Pettigrew was still alive and in hiding after all these years.

"It does explain a lot though," Draco finally nodded. "If Black was really after Potter, he would've killed Weasley and then moved onto that specky git you call a cousin."

"Oi, watch it," Leo playfully shoved his shoulder. "Only I can insult Harry."

"You're saying that even after he sided with Weasley?" Draco questioned in a tone of mild disbelief. "Potter doesn't deserve you, Black."

Leo remained silent, doodling on a spare piece of parchment. It wasn't exactly true that Harry sided with Ron after the rift, it was more that he didn't side with Leo. Harry remained torn between the two, unwilling to choose sides. It hurt more than Leo could ever put into words. After all the years they spent together, all the years they had had each others' backs, all the times they had saved each others' lives, Harry was hesitant to take his cousin's side.

"Least I got Hermione in the divorce," he tried to joke.

This was true. Harry had taken Ron's side against Hermione, leaving her no one to talk to except for Leo and – on occasion – Draco. She seemed greatly relieved that she hadn't lost all her friends in the fight over Scabbers, and was ecstatic that Leo seemed to be of the mind that Crookshanks was innocent in the disappearance of that rat.

"You and I both know that you value Potter far more than you value Granger – or any of your other friends," Draco rolled his eyes as he worked on his vampire essay for Remus.

Leo scowled. He hated when Draco pointed out obvious truths so callously. Then again, it was also why the two were such good friends. They both pointed out harsh truths the other didn't want to admit to.

Leo wasn't the only one somewhat outcasted by the Gryffindors, Neville was almost universally shunned by everyone after leaving out the list of passwords Sirius had used to gain entrance to the tower. McGonagall was so furious with him she had banned him from all future Hogsmeade visits, given him a detention, and forbidden anyone to give him the password into the tower. Poor Neville was forced to wait outside the common room every night for somebody to let him in, while the security trolls leered unpleasantly at him.

Leo had eventually taken pity on him and told him the password each time it changed. The tears of joy and grateful hug were well worth the detentions he received from McGonagall when she found out. Unfortunately, despite his kindness, the punishments were not yet over for Neville Longbottom. Two days after Sirius' break-in, his grandmother sent Neville the very worst thing a Hogwarts student could receive over breakfast — a Howler.

Neville seized the envelope, and holding it before him like a bomb, sprinted out of the hall, while the Slytherin table exploded with laughter at the sight of him. They heard the Howler go off in the entrance hall — Neville's grandmother's voice, magically magnified to a hundred times its usual volume, shrieking about how he had disgraced the whole family.

Leo winced in sympathy as he turned back to his oatmeal, relieved that there was no one to send a Howler to him. Later that evening, after he and Draco had finished their homework and gone their separate ways, Leo returned to Gryffindor tower to find people bunched around the notice board. After hearing them chatting about the next Hogsmeade weekend, he rolled his eyes and strolled over to the table Hermione usually took over.

He sat there for a moment, silently practicing his _Incindeo_ spell. He had finally learned how to cast it non-verbally, much to his glee, and had moved on to trying to cast it with his wand without saying the spell's name in his head - trying to will it to appear. He was met with mixed results. Half the time, nothing happened, but the other half a small puff of flame was released. He didn't know whether to be pleased or disappointed at how small it was.

"That's very impressive, Leo."

He turned his head up to see Hermione looking at him nervously.

"We don't learn non-verbal spell-casting until sixth year, so you're doing -"

"Hermione," Leo interrupted her, the corners of his lips twitching in amusement. "We've talked about this. If you have something to say, say it. Don't ramble on about an entirely different topic."

"Right, sorry," she replied, taking a breath. "Harry's planning on sneaking into Hogsmeade again and I don't think he should with Black on the loose - he could get hurt or killed and I think I should tell McGonagall -"

"Hermione, breathe," Leo instructed her, staring at her with mild concern when she hadn't taken a breath through that entire spiel. "Harry will be fine, trust me. He's in no danger in Hogsmeade – except for dementors and the occasional hag, anyway."

Hermione eyed him suspiciously.

"You know something."

"I know a lot of things, contrary to popular belief."

"You haven't been concerned about Black at all since his escape," she continued thoughtfully.

"I also wasn't too concerned about a giant three-headed dog, a dragon, and a giant petrifying snake roaming the school," Leo reminded her. "I don't get concerned about a lot of things."

"You know something about Black," she persisted.

"You're right, I do," he leaned forward to whisper conspiratorially. "He's actually my uncle." He pressed a finger to his lips and winked. "Don't tell anyone I told you that. It's supposed to be a secret."

"Ugh, you are the worst, Leo Castor Black!" Hermione threw her hands up in aggravation and stalked away.

Leo grinned and returned to his practice.

He was surprised sometime later when – not only had Hermione returned – but Harry and Ron were with her. Leo eyed the latter warily as the three sat down at the table with him. They seemed nervous, yet determined. Hermione and Ron kept shooting glances at Harry, as though expecting him to initiate the conversation. It suddenly dawned on Leo what they were trying to ask.

"If you're here to talk about my uncle, you can forget it," he informed the trio. "I'm not saying a damn thing until Weasley apologizes – and it's genuine."

Ron flushed red but looked stubborn and reluctant to do so. Leo, figuring that would happen, gathered his things, bid them farewell, and went up to the fifth year dormitory where he was currently staying.

He split the time leading up to the holidays between Draco, Remus, and avoiding the Trio whenever possible. He longed to go see Sirius but, with the new security measures in place, it was impossible for him to exit the castle except for Care of Magical Creatures class or unless he wanted to go to Hogsmeade. Which he most certainly did not.

The Easter holidays were not exactly relaxing. The third years had never had so much homework. Neville Longbottom seemed close to a nervous collapse, and he wasn't the only one.

"Call this a holiday!" Seamus Finnigan roared at the common room one afternoon. "The exams are ages away, what're they playing at?"

"My guess is making sure we actually pass our exams," Leo remarked dryly.

"Hey, Leo, you always do well in exams," Dean Thomas suddenly said. "Mind if we take a look at your notes?"

"I don't take notes."

Everyone was dumbstruck and had nothing to respond with.

The whole of Gryffindor House was obsessed with the coming match. It would be the first final they won with their main Seeker playing. Leo was seriously debating even showing up to the match, but decided he'd go to support Harry as well as Draco.

Never, in anyone's memory, had a match approached in such a highly charged atmosphere. By the time the holidays were over, the tension between the two teams and their Houses was at the breaking point. Several small scuffles broke out in the corridors, culminating in a nasty incident in which Leo sent a Slytherin sixth year to the hospital wing with leeks sprouting out of his ears. McGonagall gave him double detention when he refused to apologize.

All usual pursuits were abandoned in the Gryffindor common room the night before the match. Even Hermione had put down her books.

"I can't work, I can't concentrate," she said nervously.

"Eat some chocolate," Leo advised, biting on an unusually large bar. "Always helps me when I need to calm down."

"Chocolate just hypes you up, Leo," Harry rolled his eyes.

"I know. It makes me feel better and back to my old self."

Harry snorted at this.

As the match against Slytherin approached, Harry and Hermione had put aside their questions and buried the proverbial hatchet with Leo. He was relieved at this, avoiding them had been getting quite annoying. Much as he enjoyed the extra time he got to spend with Draco – who had swiftly become the Ron to his Harry – he was glad that he had his cousin back on speaking terms with him.

Wood suddenly stood up and yelled, "Team! Bed!"

Leo tried to stay put, but Fred and George grabbed him by the arms and hauled him up to their dorm to sleep. The following morning, for a nice change of pace, Leo joined the Gryffindor team for breakfast.

He and the rest of the Gryffindor team entered the Great Hall the next day to enormous applause. Leo couldn't help grinning broadly and giving flourishing bows as he saw that both the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables were applauding them too. The Slytherin table hissed loudly as they passed. Leo noticed that Draco looked nervous and somewhat pale, prompting him to give the boy an encouraging thumbs up and a broad grin.

Wood spent the whole of breakfast urging his team to eat while touching nothing himself. Leo threw a piece of bread at him in an effort to shut him up. Wood was not amused. He then hurried them off to the field before anyone else had finished, so they could get an idea of the conditions. As they left the Great Hall, everyone applauded again.

"Good luck, Harry!" called Chang.

Upon seeing Harry blush, Leo nudged his cousin, grinning broadly and giving a suggestive wiggle of his eyebrows. Harry flushed further, shoving him back before running a bit ahead to walk alongside Wood.

"Okay — no wind to speak of — the sun's a bit bright, that could impair your vision, watch out for it — ground's fairly hard, good, that'll give us a fast kickoff —"

Wood paced the field, staring around with the team behind him. Finally, they saw the front doors of the castle open in the distance and the rest of the school spilling onto the lawn.

"Locker rooms," said Wood tersely.

None of them spoke as they changed into their scarlet robes. In what seemed like no time at all, Wood was saying, "Okay, it's time, let's go —"

The match passed by in a blur to Leo, who stood at the edge of the field, watching the team fly around. Gryffindor remained in the lead the majority of the time, but Harry could not catch the Snitch until they were sixty points up. If he caught it before then, they would win the game but lose the Cup. Finally, when the points were eighty to twenty in Gryffindor's favor, Harry and Draco both dove after the Snitch. They were neck and neck until, miraculously, Harry grabbed it out of the air.

As the team sunk to the ground, wave upon wave of crimson supporters was pouring over the barriers onto the field. Hands were raining down on their backs. There was Percy, jumping up and down like a maniac, all dignity forgotten. McGonagall was sobbing harder even than Wood, wiping her eyes with an enormous Gryffindor flag; and there, fighting their way toward Harry and Leo, were Ron and Hermione. Words failed them. They simply beamed as Leo helped carry Harry toward the stands, where Dumbledore stood waiting with the enormous Quidditch Cup.

* * *

Leo was glad that the Quidditch season had officially ended, it gave him time to do something he had been unable to do for quite some time: make mischief. He set off color-change traps at various points in the school – his particular favorite was when Snape exited his office and his hair turned Gryffindor red and gold – charmed the suits of armor to sing various rude songs as people passed by, and swapped out several doorknobs for Nose-Biting ones he had gotten from Fred and George over Christmas. Instead of bringing joy and laughter to the school, it only served to stress them out more.

Exams were nearly upon them, and everyone – with the exception of Leo – was stressing out about them. Even Fred and George Weasley had been spotted working; they were about to take their O.W.L.s (Ordinary Wizarding Levels). Percy was getting ready to take his N.E.W.T.s (Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests), the highest qualification Hogwarts offered. As Percy hoped to enter the Ministry of Magic, he needed top grades. He was becoming increasingly edgy and gave very severe punishments to anybody who disturbed the quiet of the common room in the evenings. In fact, the only person who seemed more anxious than Percy was Hermione.

Leo had tried to tell her that she should bunk off the Muggle Studies exam since she didn't even need the class and she threw a very large book at him. He wisely kept his mouth shut after that.

Care of Magical Creatures was easy – all they had to do was keep a flobberworm alive. Given that they did well enough when left to their own devices, the students just lazed around and studied for other upcoming exams. At Potions that afternoon, Snape stood directly behind Leo practically the entire time, breathing down his neck as though hoping he would make a mistake. He was sorely disappointed when Leo – having spent many hours with Draco and picking up a thing or two – brewed a perfect Confusing Concoction.

Then came Astronomy at midnight, up on the tallest tower; History of Magic on Wednesday morning, in which Leo stared at the questions before he started writing down whatever came to mind, trusting that his brain knew what it was doing. Wednesday afternoon meant Herbology, in the greenhouses under a baking-hot sun, where a teething Venomous Tentacula tried several times to give Leo an unnecessary haircut. It stopped when he threatened to light it on fire.

Leo's last exam, on Thursday morning, was Defense Against the Dark Arts. Remus had compiled the most amazing exam Leo had ever seen; a sort of obstacle course outside in the sun, where they had to wade across a deep paddling pool containing a grindylow, cross a series of potholes full of Red Caps, squish their way across a patch of marsh while ignoring misleading directions from a hinkypunk, then climb into an old trunk and battle with a new boggart. Leo's high-pitched shriek of delight had many people covering their ears.

"Nicely done, Leo," Remus smiled as Leo jogged out of the trunk toward him. "Though I don't think lighting every obstacle you come across on fire should be allowed."

"It wasn't _every_ obstacle," Leo rolled his eyes. "Just a couple Red Caps and a hinkypunk that wouldn't stop following me. The boggart was just because I was feeling dramatic."

Remus snorted in amusement as Harry crawled out of the trunk next.

"Excellent, Harry. Full marks."

Leo and Harry high-fived before turning to watch Ron and Hermione each take their turn. Ron did very well until he reached the hinkypunk, which successfully confused him into sinking waist-high into the quagmire. Hermione did everything perfectly until she reached the trunk with the boggart in it. After about a minute inside it, she burst out again, screaming.

"Hermione!" said Remus, startled. "What's the matter?"

"P-P-Professor McGonagall!" Hermione gasped, pointing into the trunk. "Sh-she said I'd failed everything!"

Leo stared at her.

"Hermione. You need to sort out your priorities."

It took a little while to calm Hermione down. When at last she had regained a grip on herself, the Trio departed for the castle while Leo elected to remain behind and help Remus clean up. He didn't think the man should be exerting himself when the full moon was that night. When the two finished, Leo accompanied him back to the castle and enjoyed a hot cup of tea while he idly perused the Marauder's Map in his – so far in vain – attempt to locate Pettigrew. Hours later, he suddenly choked on his tea.

"Leo? What -"

"I found him!" Leo gasped, pointing at Hagrid's hut where the Trio, Hagrid, and one other were. "I found Pettigrew!"

Remus immediately rose from his seat, walking around to peer at the Map over the boy's shoulder. The Trio and Pettigrew were leaving the hut, and Crookshanks was streaking towards them. Pettigrew fled and Crookshanks gave chase, Ron hot on their heels with Harry and Hermione not far behind. Ron was on top of Pettigrew when, out of nowhere, Sirius appeared, dragging them both off the map in the direction of the Whomping Willow.

Leo exchanged an anxious glance with his godfather, who gave a curt nod.

"It's time."


	13. Chapter 13: The Marauders

**Chapter 13: The Marauders**

_It's nearing the end of term again, and James invited us all over to his place again so they could work on their Animagus transformations. Suppose I should go if only to make sure they don't bodge it up._

* * *

After quickly wiping and grabbing the Map off the desk, Leo and Remus took off, making all haste toward the Whomping Willow. Luck seemed to be on their side that evening as they managed to avoid teachers and students alike in their mad dash out of the castle. They moved quickly across the grounds, only halting at the Willow where Remus waved his wand, levitating a stick and prodding the knot at the trunk's base.

Leo quickly ducked into the passage, Remus not far behind him as they ran down the winding tunnel and made for the Shrieking Shack. The boy climbed out of the hole into the half-repaired room he and Sirius usually talked in. He turned around, helping Remus out as they glanced around furtively, wondering where they should go next. Their query was quickly answered by Hermione's voice.

"WE'RE UP HERE!" her voice screamed. "WE'RE UP HERE — SIRIUS BLACK — QUICK!"

The two exchanged a quick look before they thundered up the steps, bursting into the only room with a closed door, their wands raised threateningly. Their eyes flickered over Ron, lying on the floor, over Hermione, cowering next to the door, to Harry, standing there with his wand covering Sirius, and then to Sirius himself, crumpled and bleeding at Harry's feet with Crookshanks latched tightly on his chest. For the first time he could recall, Leo was truly angry at Harry.

"_Expelliarmus!_" he shouted.

Harry's wand flew out of his hand, as did the two Hermione was holding. Remus caught them as Leo ran across the room, pushing Harry aside and kneeling beside his uncle worriedly. With some gentle coaxing, he managed to convince Crookshanks to move.

"Where is he, Sirius?" Remus asked, his voice tense.

Sirius' face was quite expressionless. For a few seconds, he didn't move at all. Then, very slowly, he raised his empty hand and pointed straight at Ron. Leo turned his head quickly, eyes narrowing maliciously at the shivering bulge in the boy's robes.

"'Bout time he showed up," Leo groused. "I was beginning to worry he scarpered for good."

"What's going on -?" Harry asked loudly.

He didn't get to finish as Remus crossed over to the Blacks and he and Leo both hauled Sirius to his feet, hugging him tightly.

"I DON'T BELIEVE IT!" Hermione screamed.

"Son of a -" Leo jumped in surprise at the sudden loudness.

The Blacks and Remus released each other to stare at her. She had raised herself off the floor and was pointing at Remus, wild-eyed. "You — you —"

"Hermione —"

"– you and him!"

"Use your words now, Hermione," Leo stated in a dry tone.

"I didn't tell anyone!" Hermione shrieked. "I've been covering up for you —"

"Hermione, listen to me, please" Remus shouted. "We can explain —"

"I trusted you," Harry shouted at Remus, his voice wavering, out of control. His eyes turned to Leo, flashing with betrayal. "Both of you! And all the time you've been his friend!"

"Yup," Leo replied. "Well, nephew, anyway. I'd also use protégé, dog walker -"

"Not helpful, Leo," Remus informed him. "Please, let me explain -"

"NO!" Hermione screamed. "Harry, don't trust him, he's been helping Black get into the castle, he wants you dead too — he's a werewolf!"

There was a ringing silence. Everyone's eyes – with the exception of Leo's, who were flashing angrily at Hermione - were now on Remus, who looked remarkably calm, though rather pale.

"Are you assuming the worst because he's a werewolf or because -" Leo growled, taking a step forward before he was stopped by Remus' hand on his shoulder.

"Not at all up to your usual standard, Hermione," Remus said. "Only one out of three, I'm afraid. I have not been helping Sirius get into the castle and I certainly don't want Harry dead." An odd shiver passed over his face. "But I won't deny that I am a werewolf."

"And there's nothing wrong with that," Leo insisted. "He's just cranky a few days out of the month. You can relate to that, Herm -"

Sirius placed a hand quickly over Leo's mouth, shaking his head wildly. Leo pouted and folded his arms over his chest as Sirius slowly removed his hand. He had to quickly wrap his arms around the boy once more when Ron, after making an effort to get up, whimpered in pain, and Remus tried to rush forward to help, only for the ginger to yell "Get away from me, werewolf!"

Sirius pulled him closer, hugging Leo tight to his chest as the boy fought to free himself and beat the ever-loving crap out of Ron. He managed to clap one of his hands over Leo's mouth when he started yelling expletives at Ron.

Remy turned to Hermione, asking, "How long have you known?"

"Ages," Hermione whispered. "Since I did Professor Snape's essay..."

"He'll be delighted," said Remus coolly. "He assigned that essay hoping someone would realize what my symptoms meant... Did you check the lunar chart and realize that I was always ill at the full moon? Or did you realize that the boggart changed into the moon when it saw me?"

"Both," Hermione said quietly.

Remus forced a laugh.

"You're the cleverest witch of your age I've ever met, Hermione."

"I'm not," Hermione whispered. "Leo figured it out long before I did. How?"

"He didn't say?" Remus asked, glancing at the boy who looked downright mutinous at this point. "I told him. Christmas during his second year. I invited him to his parents' house. He saw the room I had Cas prepare for me in case of emergencies and, well..."

"He knew?" Harry blurted out angrily. "He's known you all this time and he never told me?"

"I believe Leo felt that your life was messy enough without adding on everything that was going on in his," Remus replied, glancing at Leo and receiving a curt nod in response.

"Who else knows about you?" Harry demanded.

"The staff."

"Dumbledore hired you when he knew you were a werewolf," Ron gasped. "Is he mad?"

Leo gave a muffled response.

"Some of the staff thought so," said Remus. "He had to work very hard to convince certain teachers that I'm trustworthy —"

"AND HE WAS WRONG!" Harry yelled. "YOU'VE BEEN HELPING HIM ALL THE TIME!"

He was pointing at Sirius, who suddenly crossed to the four-poster bed and sank onto it, Leo still gripped tightly in his arms despite the fact that he wasn't struggling anymore. Leo made muffled noises in response to Harry's yell, and Remus inclined his head toward him.

"To be fair, Leo's been the one helping him out for the most part. All I've done is hide him in my office one time, Leo did the rest," he replied as Leo gave a muffled 'thank you'. "Here, I'll explain -"

He separated Harry's, Ron's, and Hermione's wands and threw each back to its owner.

"There," said Remus, sticking his own wand back into his belt "You're armed, we're not. Now, will you listen?"

"What about him?" Ron glared at Leo, who still had his wand gripped firmly in his hand.

Leo flipped him off with his other hand while Sirius gave a bark-like laugh.

"I don't think one can ever truly disarm Leo," he chuckled as Leo gave a 'fair enough' expression.

"If you haven't been helping him," Harry said, with a furious glance at Sirius, "how did you know he was here?"

Remus glanced at Leo before making a gesture to Sirius, who uncovered Leo's mouth somewhat reluctantly. Leo opened his mouth, perhaps to shout several expletives and insults at all of them when he was stopped by a stern look from Remus. He gave a frustrated huff.

"There's a map," he grumbled. "The Marauder's Map. It shows everyone and everything in Hogwarts – the twins gave it to me during our first year, the day we all met Fluffy. Anyway, I've been keeping an eye on it most of the year, looking for someone. I saw you three going to Hagrid's. Thanks for the invite, by the way. Very sweet."

Remus decided to turn the conversation away from Leo's hurt feelings and sarcasm.

"You might have been wearing your father's old cloak, Harry—"

"How d'you know about the cloak?"

"The number of times I saw James disappearing under it..." said Remus, waving an impatient hand. "The point is, even if you're wearing an Invisibility Cloak, you still show up on the Marauder's Map. Leo watched you cross the grounds and enter Hagrid's hut. Twenty minutes later, you left Hagrid and set off back toward the castle. But you were now accompanied by somebody else."

"What?" said Harry. "No, we weren't!"

"Get your eyes checked, Harry, yes you were," Leo rolled his eyes as though this should be obvious.

"No one was with us!" said Harry.

"And then we saw another dot, moving fast toward you, labeled Sirius Black... We saw him collide with you; we watched as he pulled two of you into the Whomping Willow —" Remus continued as though the two boys weren't rudely interrupting him.

"One of us!" Ron said angrily.

"No, Ron," said Remus. "Two of you. Do you think I could have a look at the rat?"

"What?" said Ron. "What's Scabbers got to do with it?"

"Everything," said Remus. "Could I see him, please?"

Ron hesitated, then put a hand inside his robes. Scabbers emerged, thrashing desperately; Ron had to seize his long bald tail to stop him escaping. Leo struggled against Sirius once more. Pettigrew was within his reach, all he had to do was grab him.

Remus moved closer to Ron. He seemed to be holding his breath as he gazed intently at Scabbers.

"What?" Ron said again, holding Scabbers close to him, looking scared. "What's my rat got to do with anything?"

"That's not a rat," Sirius informed them.

"What d'you mean — of course, he's a rat —"

"Well, he is and he isn't," Leo stated, tilting his head to the side.

"He's a wizard," Remus explained.

"An Animagus," said Sirius. "by the name of Peter Pettigrew."

"Still wondering how a dope like him ever accomplished it," Leo mused thoughtfully. "He never sounded especially bright -"

"You're all mental," Ron said faintly.

"Ridiculous!" Hermione agreed.

"Peter Pettigrew's dead!" said Harry. "He killed him twelve years ago!" He pointed at Sirius, whose face twitched convulsively.

"If only," Leo snorted. "Would've solved so many problems, I reckon."

"Lot fewer deaths -" Sirius nodded in agreement.

"Happier families," Leo piped up. "Grand old time all around, I'd say."

"You're nutters, both of you," said Ron shakily, looking round at Harry and Hermione for support. "I've had enough of this. I'm off."

"You've had a thirty-some-odd man disguised as a rat sleeping in the same bed as you for years and we're the crazy ones?" Leo rolled his eyes.

"He does have a point there," Sirius conceded.

"All right, that's enough you two," Remus said sharply before turning to Ron. "You're going to hear me out, Ron. Just keep a tight hold on Peter while you listen."

"HE'S NOT PETER, HE'S SCABBERS!" Ron yelled, trying to force the rat back into his front pocket, but Scabbers was fighting too hard; Ron swayed and overbalanced, and Harry caught him and pushed him back down to the bed. Then, ignoring the Blacks, Harry turned to Remus.

"There were witnesses who saw Pettigrew die," he said. "A whole street full of them..."

"They didn't see what they thought they saw!" said Sirius savagely, still watching Scabbers struggling in Ron's hands.

"First off: ow, my ear," Leo grumbled crossly. "Secondly, there were witnesses who said you were goading that snake toward Justin last year. Doesn't make it true."

He took a deep breath.

"Look, I didn't believe it either at first. But, seeing Pettigrew's name on the Map – reading my dad's journals and seeing him write over and over again how Peter wasn't to be trusted... well, it piqued my curiosity. I sent a letter to Sirius, got his side of the story, that's when everything started to make sense."

Hermione spoke, in a trembling, would-be calm sort of voice.

"But... Scabbers can't be Pettigrew... it just can't be true, you know it can't..."

"Why can't it be true?" Remus said calmly, as though they were in class, and Hermione had simply spotted a problem in an experiment with grindylows.

"Because... because people would know if Peter Pettigrew had been an Animagus. We did Animagi in class with Professor McGonagall. And I looked them up when I did my homework — the Ministry of Magic keeps tabs on witches and wizards who can become animals; there's a register showing what animal they become, and their markings and things... and I went and looked Professor McGonagall up on the register, and there have been only seven Animagi this century, and Pettigrew's name wasn't on the list."

Leo stared at Hermione, bewildered by her blind belief that everyone would follow the rules. Remus seemed to think the same thing as he started to laugh.

"Right again, Hermione!" he said. "But the Ministry never knew that here used to be four unregistered Animagi running around Hogwarts."

"If you're going to tell them the story, get a move on, Remus," said Sirius, who was still watching Scabbers' every desperate move. "I've waited twelve years, I'm not going to wait much longer."

"Well, maybe if you had stuck to the plan and let me handle it instead of breaking into the castle half-cocked and sending him scarpering, you'd have Pettigrew by now," Leo scolded him in what Sirius would call his 'Moony voice'.

"Oh, yes, because you're the pinnacle of patience?" Sirius snorted.

"Hey, I'm not the one who mucked all this up -" Leo argued hotly.

"Should've kept my hand over your mouth -"

"Do it, and I'll lick you -"

"You don't know where my hands have been -"

"Do I come across as the sort of person who cares -"

Everyone stared at the two as they idly bickered back and forth. Remus mainly looked faintly amused, used to this sort of behavior between the two, very similar people. The other three, however, didn't know what to think. They'd been told for months – years, in Ron's case – that Sirius was a murderous lunatic, but here he was, arguing with a thirteen-year-old and seeming like the most normal person they had ever met. It was rather disconcerting.

"Alright, you two, settle down," Remus finally said. "I think it's time we finally give these three the explanation they deserve."

"Can I tell it?" Leo asked excitedly, abandoning his argument with his uncle for the moment.

"That depends, are you going to make snide comments and sarcastic remarks?" Remus raised an eyebrow.

"Duh, but I'll also skip over the unnecessary details to make up for it," Leo shrugged. "They need an explanation, not a Binns lecture."

Remus seemed to have an internal debate before giving a reluctant sigh and gesturing for Leo to begin. The boy suppressed an excited squeal as he cleared his throat, re-holstered his wand, and clasped his hands together on his lap.

"Over a hundred years ago, back when Remus was first bitten as a wee little tyke -"

"I'm immediately regretting my decision," Remus groaned.

"Hush, Moony, I'm trying to tell a story," Leo gently berated him. "Anyway, when Remus was about four – almost five – a prick named Fenrir Greyback broke into his house and bit him, turning him into a werewolf. Because he turned fluffy once a month, poor dear Remy here thought he'd never go to Hogwarts. Lucky for him, a crazy old man named Dumbledore was Headmaster of the school and allowed him to attend.

"He planted a Whomping Willow on the grounds in anticipation for Remy's arrival – the passage of which would lead to the Shrieking Shack. He spread a rumor that the place was full of spooky ghosts when in reality it was home to a poorly behaved overgrown dog once a month."

Sirius snorted.

"While Remy attended Hogwarts, he became friends with three of the coolest people you've ever heard of: Sirius Black, James Potter, and Castor Black. Oh, and I guess Pettigrew was there too. Sort of hovering in the background like a weirdo. Very creepy."

Remus put his face in his hands as the Trio stared at Leo, not sure whether or not they should laugh. At the very least, their attention was kept.

"My dad knew what Remy was right away, but it took Siri and James a bit to catch up – they didn't find out until second year. Instead of shunning him like poor old Moon-Moon feared they would do, they did something way more wicked: they became Animagi."

"My dad too?" said Harry, astounded.

"Yes, indeed," said Remus. "It took them the best part of three years to work out how to do it. Your fathers and Sirius here were the cleverest students in the school, and lucky they were because the Animagus transformation can go horribly wrong — one reason the Ministry keeps a close watch on those attempting to do it. Peter needed all the help he could get from James and Sirius. Finally, in our fifth year, they managed it. They could each turn into a different animal at will."

"But how did that help you?" said Hermione, sounding puzzled.

Remus opened his mouth to respond when Leo interrupted him.

"Moony, I was telling the story," he whined.

Remus sighed and gestured for him to continue. Leo drew himself up.

"Werewolf bites don't affect animals. So, they turned into animals that Remy could frolic around with on the full moon. Siri, Jamesie, and my dad were big boys that could keep fluffy over here in check in case he got too rough. Pettigrew turned into a rat – the signs were there, people – and touched the knot on the Willow, freezing it. With their new forms, they were able to explore more of Hogwarts and its grounds – creating more mischief while they were at it. They eventually finished the Marauder's Map and signed it with their weird-arse names. Sirius was Padfoot, Pettigrew was Wormtail, James was Prongs, and so on -"

"What sort of animal —?" Harry began, but Hermione cut him off, looking at Remus. "That was still really dangerous! Running around in the dark with a werewolf! What if you'd given the others the slip, and bitten somebody?"

"Well, then it sucks to be them," Leo replied flippantly before Remus could, wanting to get on with the story. "He almost bit Snape one year. Siri played a trick on him – bit over the top if you ask me -"

"It served him right," Sirius sneered. "Sneaking around, trying to find out what we were up to... hoping he could get us expelled..."

"Severus was very interested in where I went every month," Remus told Harry, Ron, and Hermione. "We were in the same year, you know, and we — er — didn't like each other very much. He especially disliked James and Castor. Jealous, I think, of their talent on the Quidditch field... anyway Snape had seen me crossing the grounds with Madam Pomfrey one evening as she led me toward the Whomping Willow to transform. Sirius thought it would be — er — amusing, to tell Snape all he had to do was prod the knot on the tree trunk with a long stick, and he'd be able to get in after me. Well, of course, Snape tried it — if he'd got as far as this house, he'd have met a fully grown werewolf — but your father, who'd heard what Sirius had done, went after Snape and pulled him back, at great risk to his life... Snape glimpsed me, though, at the end of the tunnel. He was forbidden by Dumbledore to tell anybody, but from that time on he knew what I was..."

"So that's why Snape doesn't like you," said Harry slowly, "because he thought you were in on the joke?"

"Let's be honest here, Harry, Snape doesn't really like anyone," Leo rolled his eyes. "Anyway, that's the gist of what happened. Mind handing over Pettigrew now?"

"Why should we believe you?" Harry demanded. "Why should we believe any of this -?"

"Because I've always believed you, Harry," Leo whispered, meeting his cousin's eyes. "I think it's only fair that you do the same. Besides, we can offer you proof."

Remus nodded as Harry looked somewhat ashamed.

"Ron, if you could hand over Peter, please?" Remus asked, holding out his hand.

Ron clutched Scabbers closer to his chest

"Come off it," he said weakly. "Are you trying to say he broke out of Azkaban just to get his hands on Scabbers? I mean..." He looked up at Harry and Hermione for support, "Okay, say Pettigrew could turn into a rat — there are millions of rats — how's he supposed to know which one he is after if he was locked up in Azkaban?"

"Remy wrote a letter, told him he was at Hogwarts," Leo shrugged. "Then he saw that picture of Scabbers on your shoulder in the _Prophet_ and knew where to look." He looked at Ron, holding up his hand and wagging a finger. "Scabbers is missing a toe. Pettigrew cut off his finger -"

"-just before he transformed," Sirius nodded, finally releasing Leo after realizing the boy wouldn't try to attack Ron. "When I cornered him, he yelled for the whole street to hear that I'd betrayed Lily and James. Then, before I could curse him, he blew apart the street with the wand behind his back, killed everyone within twenty feet of himself — and sped down into the sewer with the other rats..."

"Didn't you ever hear, Ron?" said Remus as Leo moved to sit beside his uncle, rubbing his upper arms. "The biggest bit of Peter they found was his finger."

"Look, Scabbers probably had a fight with another rat or something! He's been in my family for ages, right —"

"Twelve years, in fact," said Remus. "Didn't you ever wonder why he was living so long?"

"We — we've been taking good care of him!" said Ron.

"Not looking too good at the moment, though, is he?" said Remus. "I'd guess he's been losing weight ever since he heard Sirius was on the loose again..."

"Not surprising, we Blacks can be quite intimidating," Leo nodded.

"He's been scared of that mad cat!" said Ron, nodding toward Crookshanks, who was purring on the bed.

"This cat isn't mad," said Sirius. He reached out a hand and stroked Crookshanks's fluffy head. "He's the most intelligent of his kind I've ever met. He recognized Peter for what he was right away. And when he met me, he knew I was no dog. It was a while before he trusted me... Thankfully, Leo brought him round and was able to tell him what we were after, and he's been helping us..."

"Helping or hindering?" Leo snorted, moving his hand away as Crookshanks swiped at it. "If he hadn't kept going after Pettigrew, he wouldn't have panicked and done a runner."

"What do you mean?" breathed Hermione.

"He tried to bring Peter to me, but couldn't... so he stole the passwords into Gryffindor Tower for me... As I understand it, he took them from a boy's bedside table..." Sirius paused, glancing at Ron somewhat apologetically. "I apologize for the fright I gave you. Leo already told me Peter was gone but, well... I wasn't particularly thrilled with the way you treated my nephew."

"Don't apologize," Leo rolled his eyes. "He was being a prick. If anyone deserves an apology, it's me. And you too, of course." He shook his head. "I knew when I saw the bedsheets that Pettigrew must have faked his death again -"

"Worked once, why not do it again?" Sirius snorted.

"And why did he fake his death?" Harry said furiously. "Because he knew you were about to kill him like you killed my parents!"

"No," said Remus, "Harry—"

"And now you've come to finish him off!"

"Yes, I have," said Sirius, with an evil look at Scabbers.

"That is the ultimate mission, after all," Leo shrugged.

"Harry," said Remus hurriedly, "don't you see? All this time you thought Sirius betrayed your parents, and Peter tracked him down — but it was the other way around, don't you see? Peter betrayed your mother and father — Sirius tracked Peter down —"

"THAT'S NOT TRUE!" Harry yelled. "HE WAS THEIR SECRET-KEEPER! HE SAID SO BEFORE YOU TURNED UP. HE SAID HE KILLED THEM!"

Leo frowned at his uncle.

"That statement is wildly incorrect and you need to rectify it, good sir."

Sirius laughed humorlessly.

"Harry... I as good as killed them," he croaked. "I persuaded Lily and James to change to Peter at the last moment, persuaded them to use him as Secret-Keeper instead of me... I'm to blame, I know it... The night they died, I'd arranged to check on Peter, make sure he was still safe, but when I arrived at his hiding place, he'd gone. Yet there was no sign of a struggle. It didn't feel right. I was scared. I set out for your parents' house straight away. And when I saw their house, destroyed, and their bodies... I realized what Peter must've done... what I'd done..."

His voice broke. He turned away. Leo enveloped him in a one-armed hug, receiving a small, grateful smile in return.

"Enough of this," said Remus, and there was a steely note in his voice not even Leo had heard before. "There's one certain way to prove what really happened. Ron, give me that rat."

"What are you going to do with him if I give him to you?" Ron asked Remus tensely.

"Force him to show himself," said Remus. "If he really is a rat, it won't hurt him."

Ron hesitated. Then at long last, he held out Scabbers, and Remus took him. Scabbers began to squeak without stopping, twisting and turning, his tiny black eyes bulging in his head. "Ready, Sirius?" said Remus.

Sirius rose from the bed, taking his wand out of his pocket as the Trio looked on in astonishment, obviously having not known he had one. He approached Remus and the struggling rat, and his wet eyes suddenly seemed to be burning in his face. Leo flicked out his own wand, pointing it at Pettigrew in case he made any sudden moves.

"Together?" Sirius said quietly.

"I think so", said Remus, holding Scabbers tightly in one hand and his wand in the other. "On the count of three. One — two — THREE!"

A flash of blue-white light erupted from both wands; for a moment, Scabbers was frozen in midair, his small gray form twisting madly — Ron yelled — the rat fell and hit the floor. There was another blinding flash of light and then —

It was like watching a sped-up film of a growing tree. A head was shooting upward from the ground; limbs were sprouting; a moment later, a man was standing where Scabbers had been, cringing and wringing his hands. Crookshanks was spitting and snarling on the bed; the hair on his back was standing up. Leo shot up from the bed, held at bay by Sirius, who threw out a hand to stop him.

He was a very short man, Leo was slightly taller than he was. His thin, colorless hair was unkempt and there was a large bald patch on top. He had the shrunken appearance of a plump man who has lost a lot of weight in a short time. His skin looked grubby, almost like Scabbers' fur, and something of the rat lingered around his pointed nose and his very small, watery eyes. He looked around at them all, his breathing fast and shallow. Leo saw his eyes dart to the door and back again.

With a few flicks of his wand and a couple mumbled words, the door closed and locked itself. Pettigrew was trapped._ Like a rat._ Leo thought wryly.

"Well, hello, Peter," said Remus pleasantly, as though rats frequently erupted into old school friends around him. "Long time, no see."

"S—Sirius... R—Remus..." Even Pettigrew's voice was squeaky. Again, his eyes darted toward the door, seeming to wonder if he could open it somehow. "My friends... my old friends..."

Leo snorted.

"Last time I checked, friends don't frame other friends for murder and get them chucked into prison."

Sirius' wand arm rose, but Remus seized him around the wrist, gave him a warning look, then turned again to Pettigrew, his voice light and casual.

"We've been having a little chat, Peter, about what happened the night Rose, Lily, and James died. You might have missed the finer points while you were squeaking around down there on the bed —"

"Remus," gasped Pettigrew, and Leo could see beads of sweat breaking out over his pasty face, "you don't believe him, do you...? He tried to kill me, Remus..."

"Shame he failed," Leo mumbled.

"So we've heard," said Remus, more coldly. "I'd like to clear up one or two little matters with you, Peter, if you'll be so —"

"He's come to try and kill me again!" Pettigrew squeaked suddenly, pointing at Sirius, and Leo saw that he used his middle finger, because his index was missing. "He killed Rose, Lily, and James and now he's going to kill me too... You've got to help me, Remus..."

"No one's going to try and kill you until we've sorted a few things out," said Remus.

"I might try to kill him," Leo stated, raising his hand as Sirius nodded in agreement.

"Not the time, Leo," Remus scolded him.

"Sorted things out?" squealed Pettigrew, looking wildly about him once more, eyes taking in the boarded windows and, again, the only door. "I knew he'd come after me! I knew he'd be back for me! I've been waiting for this for twelve years!"

"You knew Sirius was going to break out of Azkaban?" said Remus, his brow furrowed. "When nobody has ever done it before?"

"He's got dark powers the rest of us can only dream of!" Pettigrew shouted shrilly. "How else did he get out of there? I suppose He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named taught him a few tricks!"

Sirius and Leo exchanged a look before they both roared with laughter.

"Voldemort, teach me tricks?" Sirius finally said.

"What was Voldemort supposed to teach you? How to roll over and play dead?" Leo chuckled.

Pettigrew flinched as though the Blacks had brandished a whip at him.

"What, scared to hear your old master's name?" said Sirius. "I don't blame you, Peter. His lot aren't very happy with you, are they?"

"Our lot won't be very happy with him either," Leo remarked. "He'll be unpopular all around. It'll feel just like school, I imagine."

"Don't know what you mean —" muttered Pettigrew, his breathing faster than ever. His whole face was shining with sweat now.

"You haven't been hiding from me for twelve years," said Sirius. "You've been hiding from Voldemort's old supporters. I heard things in Azkaban, Peter... They all think you're dead, or you'd have to answer to them... I've heard them screaming all sorts of things in their sleep. Sounds like they think the double-crosser double-crossed them. Voldemort went to the Potters' on your information... and Voldemort met his downfall there. And not all Voldemort's supporters ended up in Azkaban, did they? There are still plenty out here, biding their time, pretending they've seen the error of their ways. If they ever got wind that you were still alive, Peter —"

"Don't know... what you're talking about..." said Pettigrew again, more shrilly than ever. He wiped his face on his sleeve and looked up at Remus. "You don't believe this — this madness, Remus —"

"I must admit, Peter, I have difficulty in understanding why an innocent man would want to spend twelve years as a rat," said Remus evenly.

_Yeah, that's a real head-scratcher._

"Innocent, but scared!" squealed Pettigrew. "If Voldemort's supporters were after me, it was because I put one of their best men in Azkaban — the spy, Sirius Black!"

Sirius's face contorted.

"How dare you," he growled, sounding suddenly like the bear-sized dog he usually was. "I, a spy for Voldemort? When did I ever sneak around people who were stronger and more powerful than myself? But you, Peter — I'll never understand why I didn't see you were the spy from the start. Even Cas saw right through you – straight from the beginning. We should've listened to him from the start."

Pettigrew wiped his face again; he was almost panting for breath.

"Me, a spy... must be out of your mind... never... don't know how you can say such a —"

"Lily and James only made you Secret-Keeper because I suggested it," Sirius hissed, so venomously that Pettigrew took a step backward. "I thought it was the perfect plan... a bluff... Voldemort would be sure to come after me, would never dream they'd use a weak, talentless thing like you... It must have been the finest moment of your miserable life, telling Voldemort you could hand him the Potters."

Pettigrew was muttering distractedly; Leo caught words like "far-fetched" and "lunacy," but he couldn't help paying more attention to the ashen color of Pettigrew's face and the way his eyes continued to dart toward the windows and door. He tightened his grip on his wand, leveling it at his chest.

"Professor Lupin?" said Hermione timidly. "Can — can I say something?"

"Certainly, Hermione," said Remus courteously.

"Well — Scabbers — I mean, this — this man — he's been sleeping in Harry's dormitory for three years. If he's working for You-Know-Who, how come he never tried to hurt Harry before now?"

"There!" said Pettigrew shrilly, pointing at Ron with his maimed hand. "Thank you! You see, Remus? I have never hurt a hair of Harry's head! Why should I?"

"I'll tell you why," said Sirius. "Because you never did anything for anyone unless you could see what was in it for you. Voldemort's been in hiding for fifteen years, they say he's half dead. You weren't about to commit murder right under Albus Dumbledore's nose, for a wreck of a wizard who'd lost all of his power, were you? You'd want to be quite sure he was the biggest bully in the playground before you went back to him, wouldn't you? Why else did you find a wizard family to take you in? Keeping an ear out for news, weren't you, Peter? Just in case your old protector regained strength, and it was safe to rejoin him..."

Pettigrew opened his mouth and closed it several times. He seemed to have lost the ability to talk.

"Er — Mr. Black — Sirius?" said Hermione.

Leo snorted as Sirius jumped at being addressed like this and stared at Hermione as though he had never seen anything quite like her.

"If you don't mind me asking, how — how did you get out of Azkaban, if you didn't use Dark Magic?"

"Thank you!" gasped Pettigrew, nodding frantically at her. "Exactly! Precisely what I —"

"Shut the hell up, Pettigrew," Leo snapped.

Pettigrew clamped his mouth shut abruptly. Sirius was frowning slightly at Hermione, but not as though he were annoyed with her. He seemed to be pondering his answer.

"I don't know how I did it," he said slowly. "I think the only reason I never lost my mind is that I knew I was innocent. That wasn't a happy thought, so the dementors couldn't suck it out of me... but it kept me sane and knowing who I am... helped me keep my powers... so when it all became... too much... I could transform in my cell... become a dog. Dementors can't see, you know..." He swallowed. "They feel their way toward people by feeding off their emotions... They could tell that my feelings were less — less human, less complex when I was a dog... but they thought, of course, that I was losing my mind like everyone else in there, so it didn't trouble them. But I was weak, very weak, and I had no hope of driving them away from me without a wand...

"But then I got that letter from Remus – that Peter was at Hogwarts," Sirius gave a pointed look at Leo. "If you had told me he was there with you – with Harry - perfectly positioned to act, if one hint reached his ears that the Dark Side was gathering strength again... ready to strike at the moment he could be sure of allies... and to deliver the last Potter to them. Well, I would've told you what he was sooner. I would've come sooner."

"I thought he was an invisible man trapped in the walls – how was I supposed to know he would pose an actual threat?" Leo replied somewhat indignantly. "My first thought at seeing a dead man on the Map, oddly enough, was not 'oh, he must be disguised as my cousin's best mate's rat, better go send a letter to my uncle.'"

"To be fair, there were hints everywhere – your father called him a rat every time he mentioned him," Sirius reminded him, grinning when Leo frowned in mild irritation. "Now, where was I? Ah...

"It was as if someone had lit a fire in my head, and the dementors couldn't destroy it... It wasn't a happy feeling... it was an obsession... but it gave me strength, it cleared my mind. So, one night when they opened my door to bring food, I slipped past them as a dog... It's so much harder for them to sense animal emotions that they were confused... I was thin, very thin... thin enough to slip through the bars... I swam as a dog back to the mainland... I stayed with Leo for a bit before I journeyed north and slipped into the Hogwarts grounds as a dog. I've been living in the Shack ever since, except when I came to watch the Quidditch match, of course. You fly as well as your father did, Harry..." He glanced at Leo. "As do you, though you are a hell of a lot more reckless than he ever was."

Leo grinned proudly, puffing out his chest.

"Believe me," croaked Sirius. "Believe me, Harry. I never betrayed James and Lily. I would have died before I betrayed them."

Harry stared at him for a moment before nodding slowly.

"No!"

Pettigrew had fallen to his knees as though Harry's nod had been his own death sentence. He shuffled forward on his knees, groveling, his hands clasped in front of him as though praying.

"Sirius — it's me... it's Peter... your friend... you wouldn't —"

Sirius kicked out and Pettigrew recoiled.

"There's enough filth on my robes without you touching them," said Sirius.

"Remus!" Pettigrew squeaked, turning to Remus instead, writhing imploringly in front of him. "You don't believe this — wouldn't Sirius have told you they'd changed the plan?"

"Not if he thought I was the spy, Peter," said Remus. "I assume that's why you didn't tell me, Sirius?" he said casually over Pettigrew's head.

"Forgive me, Remus," said Sirius.

"Not at all, Padfoot, old friend," said Remus, who was now rolling up his sleeves. "And will you, in turn, forgive me for believing you were the spy?"

"Of course," said Sirius, and the ghost of a grin flitted across his gaunt face. He, too, began rolling up his sleeves. "Shall we kill him together?"

"Yes, I think so," said Remus grimly.

"You wouldn't... you won't..." gasped Pettigrew. And he scrambled around to Ron. "Ron... haven't I been a good friend... a good pet? You won't let them kill me, Ron, will you... you're on my side, aren't you?"

But Ron was staring at Pettigrew with the utmost revulsion.

"I let you sleep in my bed!" he said.

"Yeah, that's still gross and completely creepy," Leo wrinkled his nose in disgust.

"Kind boy... kind master..." Pettigrew crawled toward Ron "You won't let them do it... I was your rat... I was a good pet..."

"If you made a better rat than a human, it's not much to boast about, Peter," said Sirius harshly as Leo snorted.

Ron, going still paler with pain, wrenched his broken leg out of Pettigrew's reach. Pettigrew turned on his knees, staggered forward, and seized the hem of Hermione's robes.

"Sweet girl... clever girl... you — you won't let them... Help me..."

Hermione pulled her robes out of Pettigrew's clutching hands and backed away against the wall, looking horrified.

Pettigrew crawled toward Leo, who looked down at him expressionlessly with a raised eyebrow.

"Leo - Leo your father was a good man – a kind man – he wouldn't have -"

A loud crack and a thud sounded as Pettigrew fell back, clutching the bloody nose Leo had just punched.

"Hot damn, that felt good," Leo whistled, shaking out his hand. "For the record, pretty sure my dad would be totally on board with killing you. You essentially destroyed his entire family so... burn in hell you worthless rat."

He swung out a kick and Pettigrew whimpered before he crawled his way over to Harry, trying to make one final plea for his pathetic life.

"Harry... Harry... you look just like your father... just like him..."

"HOW DARE YOU SPEAK TO HARRY?" roared Sirius. "HOW DARE YOU FACE HIM? HOW DARE YOU TALK ABOUT JAMES IN FRONT OF HIM?"

"Harry," whispered Pettigrew, shuffling toward him, hands outstretched. "Harry, James wouldn't have wanted me killed... James would have understood, Harry... he would have shown me mercy..."

Leo, Sirius, and Remus strode forward, seized Pettigrew's shoulders, and threw him backward onto the floor. He sat there, twitching with terror, staring up at them.

"You sold Lily and James to Voldemort," said Sirius, who was shaking too. "Do you deny it?"

Pettigrew burst into tears. It was horrible to watch, like an over-sized, balding baby, cowering on the floor. But Leo didn't feel any pity. Only utter revulsion.

"Sirius, Sirius, what could I have done? The Dark Lord... you have no idea... he has weapons you can't imagine... I was scared, Sirius, I was never brave like you and Cas and Remus and James. I never meant it to happen... He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named forced me —"

"DON'T LIE!" bellowed Sirius. "YOU'D BEEN PASSING INFORMATION TO HIM FOR A YEAR BEFORE LILY AND JAMES DIED! YOU WERE HIS SPY!"

"He — he was taking over everywhere!" gasped Pettigrew. "Wh-what was there to be gained by refusing him?"

"Give me five minutes, I'll make you a list," Leo deadpanned.

"Let's start with the obvious: innocent lives, Peter!" said Sirius, with a terrible fury in his face.

You don't understand!" whined Pettigrew. "He would have killed me, Sirius!"

"THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE DIED!" roared Sirius. "DIED RATHER THAN BETRAY YOUR FRIENDS, AS WE WOULD HAVE DONE FOR YOU!"

Sirius and Remus stood shoulder to shoulder, wands raised. Leo watched on with grim satisfaction. Much as he wanted to participate, Sirius and Remus had both adamantly refused. They didn't think he needed any more blood on his hands. He reluctantly agreed.

"You should have realized," said Remus quietly, "if Voldemort didn't kill you, we would. Goodbye, Peter."

Hermione covered her face with her hands and turned to the wall.

"NO!" Harry yelled. He ran forward, placing himself in front Pettigrew, facing the wands. "You can't kill him," he said breathlessly. "You can't."

The Blacks and Remus exchanged baffled looks.

"Harry, this piece of vermin is the reason you have no parents," Sirius snarled. "This cringing bit of filth would have seen you die too, without turning a hair. You heard him. His own stinking skin meant more to him than your whole family."

"If anyone's ever deserved death, it's him," Leo agreed vehemently.

"I know," Harry panted. "We'll take him up to the castle. We'll hand him over to the dementors... He can go to Azkaban... but don't kill him."

"Harry!" gasped Pettigrew, and he flung his arms around Harry's knees. "You — thank you — it's more than I deserve — thank you —"

"Get off me," Harry spat, throwing Pettigrew's hands off him in disgust. "I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing it because — I don't reckon my dad would've wanted them to become killers — just for you."

No one moved or made a sound except Pettigrew, whose breath was coming in wheezes as he clutched his chest. Sirius and Remus were looking at each other. Then, with one movement, they lowered their wands.

"You and Leo are the only people who have the right to decide, Harry," said Sirius. "But think... think what he did..."

"He can go to Azkaban," Harry repeated. "If anyone deserves that place, he does..."

Leo felt many pairs of eyes on him at once. He crossed his arms over his chest, scowling at the wall in thought. After a moment, he threw up his hands in frustration.

"Fine," he reluctantly agreed. "It'd be a bit difficult to convince anyone Siri's innocent if we're lugging around Pettigrew's corpse anyhow."

"Then it's settled," said Remus. "Stand aside, Harry."

Harry hesitated.

"I'm going to tie him up," said Remus. "That's all, I swear."

Harry stepped out of the way. Thin cords shot from Remy's wand, and next moment, Pettigrew was wriggling on the floor, bound and gagged.

"But if you transform, Peter," growled Sirius, his own wand pointing at Pettigrew too, "we will kill you. You both agree?"

"Abso-bloody-lutely," Leo stated as Harry nodded next to him.

"Right," said Remus, suddenly businesslike. "Ron, I can't mend bones nearly as well as Madam Pomfrey, so I think it's best if we just strap your leg up until we can get you to the hospital wing."

He hurried over to Ron, bent down, tapped Ron's leg with his wand, and muttered, "_Ferula._" Bandages spun up Ron's leg, strapping it tightly to a splint. Remus helped him to his feet; Ron put his weight gingerly on the leg and didn't wince.

"That's better," he said. "Thanks."

"Shall we carry on?" Leo suggested. "We're wasting time I could be using to prank Snape."

Sirius snorted.

"Sure, but two of us should be chained to this," said Sirius, nudging Pettigrew with his toe. "Just to make sure."

"No thanks, don't think I can be trusted with him," Leo said honestly.

"I'll do it," said Remus.

"And me," said Ron savagely, limping forward.

Sirius conjured heavy manacles from thin air; soon Pettigrew was upright again, left arm chained to Remus's right, right arm to Ron's left. Ron's face was set. He seemed to have taken Scabbers' true identity as a personal insult. Crookshanks leapt lightly off the bed and led the way out of the room, his bottlebrush tail held jauntily high.


	14. Chapter 14: Bright White Knight

**Chapter 14: Bright White Knight**

_Last full moon before summer. I think Fen is excited to play with Moony again. It should be a fun night._

* * *

Despite the tense situation that had occurred mere moments ago, Leo's heart couldn't have felt lighter. All his secrets were out, there was nothing left to keep. Pettigrew had been captured and was about to be locked away. Sirius would be declared innocent and –hopefully – Harry could come home with them. Leo grinned widely at this as he led the way behind Crookshanks, wand alight and held high so everyone could see as they made their way toward the tunnel.

Getting back into the tunnel was difficult. Remus, Pettigrew, and Ron had to turn sideways to manage it; Remus still had Pettigrew covered with his wand. Leo could see them edging awkwardly along the tunnel in a single file. He would've laughed were the situation not still somewhat serious. He waited for the three to finally enter the tunnel before he moved forward again so that Sirius, Harry, and Hermione would have room to enter behind them.

"You're in a rather cheery mood," Remus remarked as he followed behind Leo.

"'Course, why wouldn't I be? Once Sirius finally gets declared innocent, he'll have guardianship rights and Harry can finally stay with us where he belongs," Leo told him brightly before he frowned.

"I know that look," Remus raised an eyebrow. "What's on your mind?"

"Well, it's just that, any time things start to go my way, something happens and it all goes sideways," Leo sighed, scratching the back of his head. "Almost feels like the universe is against me."

Remus chuckled.

"You're the last person I would've thought would believe something like that."

"Yes, well, getting Lockhart as a teacher last year changed my mind," Leo groused before thoughtfully tapping his chin. "Though, he was quite entertaining to mess with. Wonder if he ever woke up from that coma."

"You know, I asked Dumbledore about that just the other day, and he said Lockhart was still out cold in St. Mungo's," Remus informed him.

"Good."

Remus chortled as they reached the end of the tunnel. Crookshanks darted up first, pressing his paw against the knot in the trunk as Leo clambered out after him. He reached out a hand to help Remus and the others through. At last, they were all out on the grounds.

The grounds were very dark now; the only light came from the distant windows of the castle. Without a word, they set off. Pettigrew was still wheezing and occasionally whimpering. Leo threatened to cast _Langlock_ on him and he quieted down considerably. Sirius reflexively put his hand over his mouth at the mention of the spell. Neither of them had forgotten Remus casting it on them.

"One wrong move, Peter," said Remus threateningly behind Leo. His wand was still pointed sideways at Pettigrew's chest.

Silently they tramped through the grounds, the castle lights growing slowly larger. And then -

A cloud shifted. There were suddenly dim shadows on the ground. Their party was bathed in moonlight. Leo froze at the sight, whirling around to look at Remus. He had gone rigid. Then his limbs began to shake. Leo's eyes drifted to the manacles connecting him to Pettigrew and – somewhat more importantly – Ron. He fired a Reductor Curse, shattering Remus' manacle. He glanced at the others.

"He didn't take his potion tonight – you need to run!" he told them.

Harry tried to leap forward, but Sirius stopped him and threw him back.

"Leave it to me — RUN!"

There was a terrible snarling noise. Remus' head was lengthening. So was his body. His shoulders were hunching. Hair was sprouting visibly on his face and hands, which were curling into clawed paws. Crookshanks' hair was on end again; he was backing away —

The werewolf reared, snapping its long jaws as it dove at Leo, who was closest to him. His wand was knocked from his hand as Moony tackled him to the ground, one of his claws cutting the right side of his face just below his eye. He kept his hands under Moony's jaw, trying to keep him from biting his face when suddenly Padfoot appeared, knocking him off.

Leo rolled onto his side to watch them, panting heavily as they tore at each other. He turned his head to the side as he heard Hermione scream.

Pettigrew had dived for Remus' dropped wand. Ron, unsteady on his bandaged leg, fell. There was a bang, a burst of light — and Ron lay motionless on the ground. Another bang — Crookshanks flew into the air and back to the earth in a heap. The wand was pointed at Leo now, who was defenseless. Leo glared back defiantly.

"_Expelliarmus_!" Harry yelled, pointing his wand at Pettigrew; Remy's wand flew high into the air and out of sight. "Stay where you are!" Harry shouted, running forward.

Too late. Pettigrew had transformed. Leo saw his bald tail whip through the manacle on Ron's outstretched arm and heard a scurrying through the grass.

There was a howl and a rumbling growl, Leo turned to see Moony had pinned Padfoot to the ground, his jaws dangerously close to his throat. Leo grabbed wildly for his wand as a snarl came from close by. A black blur leaped over Leo, bounding over and wrenching Moony away from Padfoot. It was Knight.

Moony rolled to his paws and the two circled each other, teeth bared and fur bristling. Padfoot watched on, stunned and staring along with the rest of them. Suddenly, Moony lunged forward, paws outstretched. Knight dove forward as well, and the two rolled, biting and snarling at each other. Eventually, Knight managed to get the upper hand and pin Moony to the ground. The werewolf struggled, snarling and snapping his jaws as Knight turned to Leo and stared at him.

Leo stared back for a moment before he suddenly knew what he had to do. He grabbed his wand, re-holstering it as he slowly rose to his feet and crept toward the two, hands held up in a placating manner.

"M-Moony?" Leo said hoarsely.

Knight gave a low bark. He cleared his throat, moving past Padfoot who was still laying on the ground, staring transfixed at the werewolf and the wolf. He continued forward until he was next to the two. Knight suddenly clamped his jaws around Moony's muzzle, preventing him from biting anyone. Leo kneeled, hesitantly reaching out a hand to rest on Moony's head.

"It's okay, Moony, you can stop now," he whispered, glancing at Knight for reassurance.

Knight gave a small flick of his ear.

"We're not going to hurt you – but you can't hurt us anymore, all right?" Leo continued.

Moony continued to snarl and growl for a moment before he met the boy's eyes. The growls lessened before stopping all together. Moony continued to stare at him before letting out a low whimper. Knight relaxed, releasing the werewolf and allowing him to rise to his paws. The wolf then gave a low bark before nudging Moony in the direction of the forest. With one last look at the boy, the two took off, vanishing in the shadows of the trees.

Everyone stared after them for a moment, at a loss for words and unsure of what to do. Luckily, Harry still seemed to have his wits about him.

"Sirius, he's gone, Pettigrew transformed!" he yelled.

Padfoot was bleeding; there were gashes across his muzzle and back, but at Harry's words he scrambled up again, and in an instant, the sound of his paws faded to silence as he pounded away across the grounds.

Harry and Hermione dashed over to Ron. Leo walked over at a slightly slower pace, still dazed by his encounter.

"What did he do to him?" Hermione whispered. Ron's eyes were only half-closed, his mouth hung open; he was definitely alive, they could hear him breathing, but he didn't seem to recognize them.

"It's a Stunning Spell," Leo replied, after a moment of looking Ron over. "A simple Reviving Spell should wake him up."

"Can you cast it?" Harry asked desperately.

"Yes, just give me -" Leo began.

A pained yelp cut off Leo's words. _Padfoot._ He and Harry exchanged a look before Leo turned back to Hermione, reaching a decision.

"Take Ron back to the Shack, we'll meet you there once Sirius is safe," he ordered.

"But, Leo -"

Leo didn't hear any more as he and Harry took off across the grounds. The yelping seemed to be coming from the ground near the edge of the lake. They pelted toward it, and Leo, running flat out, felt the cold without realizing what it must mean -

The yelping stopped abruptly. As they reached the lakeshore, they saw why — Sirius had turned back into a man. He was crouched on all fours, his hands over his head.

"Nooo," he moaned. "Nooo... please..."

And then Leo saw them. Dementors, at least a hundred of them, gliding in a black mass around the lake toward them. He spun around, the familiar, icy cold penetrating his insides, fog starting to obscure his vision; more were appearing out of the darkness on every side; they were encircling them...

"Bloody hell," Leo grumbled, kneeling beside Sirius and shaking him slightly.

Beside him, Harry was already trying to cast the Patronus Charm. Sirius gave a shudder, rolled over, and lay motionless on the ground, pale as death. Leo searched his mind for a happy memory, settling on the memory of himself, Remus, and Padfoot having a snowball fight at the end of fall term.

"_Expecto patronum! Expecto patronum_!" Leo shouted, pointing his wand forward as Harry continued to do the same.

The four-legged creature he had conjured before appeared, standing like a ghost in front of the three as Harry's formless mist joined it. A few dementors halted, unable to pass them before one slid a dead, slimy hand out from under its cloak. It made a gesture as though to sweep the Patronuses aside.

"No — no —" Harry gasped. "He's innocent... _expecto expecto patronum —"_

"We can't stop – can't let them take Sirius," Leo panted, trying his best to push back the rising tide of screams and laughter that pulsed in his head.

The Patronuses vanished, Harry sank to the ground semi-conscious. Leo watched him before glancing at Sirius, renewed determination filling his veins as he pointed his wand upward. A dome of fire spewed forth from his wand, enveloping the three, its warmth keeping out the sharp cold the dementors had brought with them. Leo reached out with his left hand and grabbed Harry's wrist.

"We can't give up yet, Harry," Leo told him, shaking him slightly. "There's too much at stake – we've fought too hard -"

"There's too many, Leo," Harry replied hoarsely. "We can't make strong enough Patronuses -"

"Not with that attitude we can't," Leo replied with a dry smile, releasing him. "I know we can do it, Harry. We just have to try harder. We're Potter and Black – brothers who can take down any obstacles that come their way, no matter how difficult."

"Brothers?" Harry questioned, his eyes shining.

"Yes, brothers," Leo nodded fiercely. "After everything we've been through together, I think we've earned that." He rose to his feet, holding out his hand. "So, what do you say? Ready to give it another go, brother?"

Harry stared at his hand for a moment before grabbing it, determination flashing in his eyes as he nodded. Leo hauled him to his feet, dispersing the fire and pointing his wand at the dementors, Harry doing the same.

"_EXPECTO PATRONUM_!" they both bellowed.

And out of the end of their wands burst, not shapeless clouds of mist, but blinding, dazzling, silver animals. Leo screwed up his eyes, trying to see what they were. His looked like some kind of canine. Harry's resembled a horse somewhat. Leo's Patronus stood in front of the pair, raising its head and giving a soundless howl. Waves of light pulsed from its mouth, keeping the dementors at bay while Harry's Patronus lowered its head and charged at the retreating dementors... Now it was galloping around and around the black shapes on the ground, and the dementors were falling back, scattering, retreating into the darkness... They were gone.

Leo's Patronus turned toward him, and he was now able to see that it was a wolf – a very large one that reminded him starkly of Knight. Harry's, now cantering back toward them, was a stag. _Just like James. Just like his father._ Leo couldn't help but think as Harry reached out to touch the creature's head. _Does that mean that mine – that Knight -_

He didn't get to finish the thought as the Patronuses vanished and Harry collapsed to the ground, exhausted. Leo stared at him for a moment before glancing at Sirius, wondering how the bloody hell he was supposed to carry them both back to the Shack. His question was answered mere moments later by the appearance of two familiar faces: Moony and Knight.

They each crouched down beside one of the males – Moony next to Harry and Knight next to Sirius – and stared at Leo. He stared back until Knight barked, startling him out of his daze. He helped haul Harry onto Moony's back before doing the same with Sirius and Knight. The two rose to their paws, making their way toward the Whomping Willow with Leo following behind them wondering if he had actually gone insane.

When they got close to the Willow, Knight turned to Leo and barked again. Bemusedly, the boy levitated a stick to touch the knot at the base of the trunk and the very strange group ran inside the tunnel. It seemed to take no time at all for them to go through the tunnel and enter the Shrieking Shack. Knight led the way up the stairs to a room with two semi-repaired beds – one of which Ron and Crookshanks were already occupying. Hermione stood beside him, looking stricken and surprised at the group.

Knight – with Leo's help – settled Sirius on the other bed before he clambered up to lay beside him. He rested his head on Sirius's lap, his blue-grey eyes staring at the door. Leo stared at him for a moment before helping Moony lay Harry next to Ron. Moony walked off to lay in a corner of the room. Leo took out his wand and pointed it at Ron's chest.

"_Ennervate_," he mumbled before doing the same to Crookshanks.

Ron sat up with a loud gasp as Crookshanks jumped suddenly. Leo walked over to sit beside Moony, idly stroking his head as he stared at Knight and Sirius. Hermione was explaining in hushed tones to Ron what had happened while he had been out. She hesitated after a moment before turning to Leo and asking what had happened after they ran off. The boy shook his head, saying that he would explain once everyone was awake.

Silence settled over the group, marred only by Knight's occasional growls when Crookshanks tried to jump onto the bed and the thump of Moony's tail as Leo scratched behind his ears. Ron was the first to speak.

"I'm sorry, Leo," he finally said. "I shouldn't have called you nutters. If you can tame a werewolf... well, I was wrong, all right?"

"Did it hurt to say that?" Leo questioned dryly.

"You're still a git."

"I know," the boy smiled slightly, looking at Sirius and Knight. "It runs in the family."

They were quiet again for some time, Hermione and Ron had fallen asleep hours ago, exhausted from the day's events. Only Leo, Moony, and Knight remained awake. As dawn began to approach, Knight gave a short bark, waking Ron and Hermione up as he bounded off the bed and stopped in front of Moony. He nudged the werewolf to his paws and shepherded him down the stairs, though not before grabbing Remus' wand – which Hermione had thankfully recovered – off the nightstand. He returned moments later and resumed his previous place, snapping idly at Crookshanks who had tried to take his spot in his brief absence.

The three humans looked bewildered for a moment before Remus appeared and their questions were answered. He looked tired and worn, though thankfully fully dressed in clothes he had conjured. He looked around at them all, eyes shining triumphantly when he saw Sirius and Knight.

"I didn't imagine it," he whispered before turning to Leo.

His face paled visibly at the cut on his face. He ran forward, kneeling at his side to examine it carefully. He seemed visibly shaken.

"Leo, I'm so s-"

"Can the apology, Remy," Leo cut him off. "You have nothing to be sorry for. Moony just got overly excited."

"That's a very kind way of putting it," Remus replied in a dry tone. "Though I don't know why I expected any different from a boy who thinks playing fetch with a Cerberus is a grand idea."

"Gotta live life on the edge, Moony," Leo grinned. "The danger is what makes it fun."

Remus gave a wry smile.

"James used to say the same thing. I daresay, you take after your uncles far more than you do your parents when it comes to danger and adventure," he informed him.

Leo merely smiled widely before turning to Sirius and Knight as a loud groan came from their direction. Sirius was sitting up, staring down bemusedly at Knight, who stared back at him unblinking. Sirius idly scratched him behind his ears.

"Long time no see, Fen," he said.

Knight gave a wag of his tail and a short bark. Sirius smiled in response before pulling Knight closer to him and hugging him tightly. Knight's tail wagged harder. Leo didn't think he'd ever seen the wolf look so happy. He was usually so serious most of the time. _Leave it to someone named Sirius to stop someone from being serious._ He snorted as a groan erupted from Harry's bed.

"Had a nice nap, Harry?" Leo asked as the boy sat up.

"Yeah," Harry replied slowly. "You look like you could do with one."

Leo merely gave a tired smile in response. It was true. With his bedraggled appearance, the dried blood on his face, and the shadows under his eyes, he looked as bad as Remus right now.

"Can someone please explain what the bloody hell happened now?" Ron asked weakly.

Leo and Harry exchanged a look before they launched into the explanation of finding Sirius at the edge of the lake, slowly being swarmed by about a hundred dementors. They talked about their struggle against them before Leo's rousing pep-talk and the fully formed Patronuses they were able to cast following it. Leo then told them that Moony and Knight had appeared shortly after Harry had passed out and had carried both Sirius and Harry back to the Whomping Willow.

"Bloody hell," Ron said in awe, glancing at Knight who was still wagging his tail. "That's the strangest wolf I've ever heard of."

"He's not a wolf," Sirius smiled, looking down at Knight, who wagged his tail even harder.

"It's my dad, isn't it?" Leo whispered, staring at the wolf.

Everyone in the room sat there, stunned and shocked as Remus and Sirius slowly nodded. Leo had begun suspecting it the second he saw his and Harry's Patronuses. His suspicions were confirmed by Remus and Sirius' reactions upon seeing the black wolf.

"If that – if that's your dad," Harry began slowly. "Then why doesn't he change back? Is he hiding from someone like Pettigrew?"

Remus and Sirius shared a look.

"I don't think he can change back," Remus answered after a moment.

"That doesn't make any sense," Hermione stated. "He's an Animagus, he should be able to -"

"You've studied Animagi, Hermione," Remus interrupted her. "You know there are many risks that come with becoming one. One that the books don't usually tell you is the risk of becoming feral."

"Feral?" Leo repeated, frowning.

"When you transform, there's always a part of your mind that stays human. The reverse is true when you're in human form," Sirius explained, idly petting Knight's head. "There's a fine balance that has to be maintained when you're switching between forms. If you transform into your animal form and your mind isn't completely stable – there's a chance you can become stuck, trapped. The animal takes control. That's what being feral is."

"Is my dad even still in there?" Leo asked, staring at Knight.

Remus and Sirius exchanged another look.

"Yes," Remus inclined his head. "The human mind is usually buried deep under the animal, but it's still there somewhere. I don't think Cas is buried quite as deep, given the way he's interacted with us tonight."

"Animagi that have gone feral usually forget everything they knew when they were human," Sirius expounded at their confused looks. "The fact that Fen – Knight, as you call him – came to our rescue, that he tried to protect us is proof that Cas is in there somewhere, fighting to come back. We just have to give him time."

"What about the charm you used on Pettigrew?" Leo asked desperately. "You can turn him back -"

The Marauders were shaking their heads.

"That's not a good idea," Sirius told him.

"You run the risk of Cas' mind remaining a wolf in human form. That would be catastrophic. You can't force the transformation. Cas has to be ready," Remus explained gently.

"And when will that be?" Leo asked in a bitter tone.

Sirius smiled down wryly at the wolf who barked in response.

"Knowing Cas, it'll be whenever you need him most."

"A hundred dementors were trying to eat our souls," Leo deadpanned, Harry nodding in agreement. "One would think that would qualify."

"I think he believed that his son and his nephew were more than capable of defending themselves," Remus smiled kindly. "I'd take it as a compliment and a testament to your abilities."

Knight gave an approving bark.


	15. Chapter 15: Oh, Fudge

**Chapter 15: Oh, Fudge**

_Reggie's upset that Siri and I are leaving to stay with James, but I told him it wouldn't be long before we came back. I'll always be there for my brothers - my family._

* * *

The group traipsed up to the castle not long after that, leaving Sirius and Knight – Fen – back at the Shack. Remus and Leo walked behind the trio, talking quietly to each other and trying to figure out what story they should tell. Without Pettigrew, the truth was too wild to believe. They also didn't want Remy's secret getting out or for anyone to know Sirius was an Animagus.

About halfway to the castle, they came across Dumbledore and – surprisingly – Fudge striding toward them. Fudge looked nervous and sweaty, whereas Dumbledore looked calm as ever, though his blue eyes were twinkling with curiosity. Fudge ran toward them, looking immensely relieved at the sight of Harry being alive and well.

"Harry, my boy! You're all right! When I heard you were missing – I feared the worse! Worried Black had -" Fudge began.

"Black had nothing to do with it," Leo snapped in a very cross tone. "It was _your_ bloody dementors that caused all the problems."

"P-Pardon?" Fudge stammered, taken aback at his tone.

Leo's eyes twinkled. Remus and the trio all exchanged a small smile. They all knew what that mischievous twinkle in the blonde's eyes meant. He was about to lie and manipulate his way out of the situation and - most likely - Fudge would come out not looking too well. The Gryffindors all turned back to watch the masterpiece that was about to unfold before them.

"We were visiting Hagrid – telling him how our exams had gone. Or well, these three were," Leo jabbed a thumb at the trio. "I was helping Professor Lupin clean up after his exam before heading down to join them. We met up halfway across the lawn and, out of nowhere, dementors start appearing from everywhere – like daisies shooting up from the ground! We ran, and they swooped after us. We had to hide in the forest all night until Professor Lupin came by to rescue us! So... yeah, thanks for planting an army of soul-sucking demons around a school full of children. Brilliant plan."

"Well, that's not – they were here to catch Black -" Fudge tried to say.

"Oh, yeah, bang-up job you've done on that," Leo rolled his eyes. "I'm sure the public will be completely all right with the fact that you were willing to endanger children to catch one man. Really screams 'greatest Minister of all time'."

"You wouldn't dare -," Fudge drew himself up, though he was paling slightly.

"Try me," Leo growled, taking a step forward. "You put me, my friends, and – most importantly – Harry in danger by keeping them on this long. They should leave before the press gets wind of what happened here last night."

Fudge went, if possible, even paler. He mumbled something about needing to contact the Ministry before turning around and running back toward the castle. Leo watched him run with satisfaction, wiggling his fingers at his retreating form. The trio and Remus had to bite their tongues to hide their laughter. Dumbledore's eyes were twinkling with amusement before he waved his wand, conjuring a stretcher for Ron.

He escorted them up to the hospital wing where Pomfrey insisted that they all eat large blocks of chocolate before settling Ron into a bed and fixing his leg. She wanted everyone else – including Remus – to stay until tomorrow for observation, but Dumbledore informed her that he needed a word with both the Defense professor and Leo. The two exchanged a bewildered look as Dumbledore led them through the castle and up to his office. They took their seats in the chairs across from Dumbledore as the man sat behind his desk peering at them.

"I'd like an explanation of what happened last night," he held up a hand as Leo opened his mouth. "The truth this time, Mr. Black."

Remus and Leo exchanged a look before the former launched into the tale, starting from the very beginning with his friends becoming Animagi for him and ending with him transforming into a werewolf and Pettigrew's subsequent escape. Leo took over from there, explaining how he and Harry had rescued Sirius from the dementors and returned to the Shack to rest. He left out all mention of his father, he didn't want Dumbledore sticking his crooked nose where it didn't belong.

Dumbledore was silent and contemplative.

"That is quite the tale the both of you have told," he finally said. "One, though sounding quite unbelievable, I find myself believing." He looked at them piercingly over his glasses. "I do, however, find myself wondering how it is you two knew each other before the beginning of this year."

"He found me in the Leaky Cauldron the summer after my first year trying to drink my problems away," Leo shrugged as Remus stared at him, mouth agape. "He pulled me out of my funk and helped me get my act together. We've been talking ever since."

"I see," Dumbledore replied, glancing at Remus. "Is this true, Remus?"

"Well, it's not quite how I would have phrased it but yes," Remus inclined his head.

"Very well then, you two may go -"

"Sir, I wanted to ask," Leo interrupted. "With Sirius innocent, Harry now has a legal guardian out there besides the Dursleys. I was wondering if, instead of staying with them -"

"He could stay with you and your uncle wherever you've been hiding the past three years?" Dumbledore finished, receiving a head nod in return. "Much as I would like to, Leo, I cannot. The blood wards must remain intact. I am sorry."

Leo looked furious at this, but before he could say anything, Remus led him out of the office and down to the hospital wing so he could rest. Pomfrey tried to keep him as well, but he politely informed her that he could rest well enough in his office. The following evening saw Leo sneaking out of the hospital wing and running full tilt toward Remus' office. His office door was open.

"Remus, I – what's going on?" he asked, stopping in the archway.

He had already packed most of his things. The grindylow's empty tank stood next to his battered old suitcase, which was open and nearly full. Remus was bending over something on his desk and looked up only when Leo had barged in.

"You're resigning, aren't you?" Leo frowned. "Because of me."

"Yes and no," Remus replied, opening his desk drawers and taking out the contents. "I am resigning, but you should not feel any blame for the decision. The blame should fall solely on Moony."

"It's not Moony's fault either, you know," Leo responded in a mildly bitter tone. "You're just scared because of what happened. You're afraid to hurt someone again. That's why you're running -"

"I'm not running," Remus said sharply, turning his head to look at Leo.

Leo jumped at the sudden change in tone and Remus sighed softly.

"I'm not running," he repeated more gently. "But you are right, what happened did scare me. I am afraid it will happen again. And I worry that next time, it might happen in front of those less... understanding and supportive than you and your friends."

"You're taking off before Snape eventually blabs to the whole school, aren't you?" Leo questioned shrewdly.

Remus gave a hearty laugh.

"Yes, I suppose I am," Remus grinned, grabbing the empty tank and his suitcase.

"I'll see you again, won't I?" Leo questioned worriedly.

"Of course," Remus nodded. "That is, of course, if you don't mind me picking you up at the station with your dog -"

"I'd be quite delighted actually, Moon-Moon."

Remus gave another laugh.

The exam results came out on the last day of term. Leo, Harry, Ron, and Hermione had passed every subject. Leo was astounded that he had got through History of Magic. Given the fact that he generally snuck out when Binns was in full lecture mode, he had hardly retained anything taught in the class. He supposed those long hours of homework and Draco forcing him to help him study were what saved him. Percy had got his top-grade N.E.W.T.s; Fred and George had scraped a handful of O.W.L.s each. Gryffindor House, meanwhile, largely thanks to their spectacular performance in the Quidditch Cup, had won the House championship for the third year running. This meant that the end of term feast took place amid decorations of scarlet and gold and that the Gryffindor table was the noisiest of the lot, as everybody celebrated.

As the Hogwarts Express pulled out of the station the next morning, Hermione gave Leo, Harry, and Ron some surprising news.

"I went to see Professor McGonagall this morning, just before breakfast. I've decided to drop Muggle Studies."

"'Bout bloody time," Leo rolled his eyes.

"But you passed your exam with three hundred and twenty percent!" said Ron.

"I know," sighed Hermione, "but I can't stand another year like this one. All those classes were driving me mad. Without Muggle Studies and Divination, I'll be able to have a normal schedule again."

"How were you getting to all those classes anyway?" Ron asked for about the thousandth time.

"I promised I wouldn't tell anyone," said Hermione severely. She looked around at Harry, who was watching Hogwarts disappear from view behind a mountain.

"Oh, cheer up, Harry!" said Hermione sadly.

"I'm okay," said Harry quickly. "Just thinking about the holidays."

"Don't worry, Harry," Leo replied, clapping him on the back bracingly. "I plan on breaking you out within the week."

"But Dumbledore said -"

"To hell with what Dumbles says! You're my brother, and I'll be damned if I'm going to let you stay at the Dursleys any longer than necessary."

Harry smiled broadly, still not quite used to the idea of Leo calling him his brother. He gave Harry another hearty clap on the back before departing the compartment to go look for Draco. He found the boy further down the train, talking amicably with the Weasley twins about the upcoming Quidditch World Cup. Leo was promptly dragged into the conversation upon his arrival.

He received invitations from both the Weasleys and from Draco to attend with them. Leo laughed them both off, stating that he'd figure out a way to get his own ticket – he wouldn't miss the Cup for the world. In no time at all, they were arriving at King's Cross station and everyone was piling off the train. Leo spotted Padfoot standing in the middle of the station, tail wagging heartily at the sight of him and Harry – who just stepped through the barrier.

The two ran toward him, scratching his ears before Harry had to leave to go with Vernon back to the Dursleys. Leo followed Padfoot out of the station and round the bend, hiding in a nearby alley out of sight from everyone else. There, Padfoot turned into Sirius.

"Remus wanted to come, but -"

"He's a bit of a celebrity at Hogwarts now," Leo grinned. "Care to take us home?"

"With pleasure," Sirius smiled back, holding out his arm and grabbing Leo's trunk.

With a whirl and a _crack,_they were both gone.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Apologies for not posting last Sunday. I wasn't home all weekend and I've been so busy with work and packing that I didn't have time to post this chapter. Also didn't help that my dog chewed through the lines and we had no WiFi until almost Wednesday so... that was fun.**

**Anyway, Book 3 has come to an end. Join me next week on the wild ride that is Book 4: Badgersoul.**


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